The 1990s cult classic Dead Poets Society may be remembered as an endearing and fun coming-of-age movie. Back in the days before everything was so political. Americans will simply enjoy performances by endearing characters like Robin Williams as John Keating, an iconoclastic young teacher who inspires his students to “seize the day.”

But with hindsight, and considering how our current polarization was already brewing even back then, it's clear that this film had several options for talking about “the good life.” Hidden behind shallow melodrama, Keating is a pioneer of the very social issues that plague us today. It's ironic, then, that America's current cultural melodrama, the Taylor Swift story, is what draws a new generation back to the film.

Taylor Swift is literally the hottest person in the world right now. Time magazine named her its 2023 Person of the Year after her Elas tour broke her records, made her a millionaire, and solidified her legion of loyal “Swifties.” is. Her relationship with Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce made her the highlight of the NFL season as the couple became the most talked about people in America. Shortly after her anticipated Grammy win, she hinted at more to come. Her new album, “The Tortured Poets Department,'' will be released in April. (Related: NFL releases audio of Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift reunion at Super Bowl)

Given her stature, it's no wonder that the hype surrounding an album with an obviously Dead Poets Society title has caused a huge spike in searches for the film. According to a Google Trends analysis, interest in the film increased nearly seven times in the week following its announcement, at a whopping 588%. “Google's significant increase in interest in Dead Poets Society as a result of this announcement is evidence both of Taylor's influence as an artist, as well as the film's enduring legacy and timeless appeal. But there is.” Said Mason Jones of No Deposit Rewards, the company that compiled the data.

While Jones is right about Swift's influence, the idea that the film is “timeless” couldn't be further off the mark. In fact, the film's themes reflect a very specific cultural moment. This is a complete reversal from values ​​that were considered timeless by most cultures throughout much of history.

Although the film is set in the late 1950s, it was released in 1989, the same year that the Berlin Wall fell and America's turn toward the toxic individualism we see today. These were two pivotal moments. By the late 1950s, the idea of ​​the “emancipated” individual began to gain traction in mainstream American culture. This is the idea that individuals cannot truly be free until they are liberated from the shackles of arbitrary traditions, customs, and customs. This is a departure not only from the community-oriented localism that pervaded American history, but also from the classical idea of ​​individualism, which values ​​the individual's ability to overcome himself and his environment. Ta. On the other hand, this new individualism values ​​only the individual's ability to discover and express their true self, free from oppressive social prejudices.

By the collapse of the Soviet Union, this ideology had fully metastasized and, with no common enemy, Americans could afford to focus solely on realizing their “true selves,” and today even down to the transgender It immediately connected to the culture of narcissism that we see. The movement towards TikTok influencers. Far from being timeless, this is a novel paradigm that the film represents, pioneered by John Keating.

The film is set at an elite all-boys boarding school in New England. The opening scene sets the tone as a banner emblazoned with the school's motto of “Tradition, Honor, Discipline and Excellence” is paraded through the chapel in a grand opening ceremony. Other teachers and the boys' parents are also portrayed as stifling, backward-looking people who cling to the delusion of this motto. Mr. Keating's virtue as a clever man comes from his willingness to dismantle it.

Described as an extraordinarily talented English teacher, his opening lecture to boys was the now famous “Carpe Diem” speech, in which he urged them to “make life special.” I encourage it. He takes them outside and coaches them to find their own style of strutting, a painfully hackneyed metaphor for self-expression. When other teachers question his methods, he explains that it is more important for the boys to become “free thinkers” than to learn “discipline.” He went on to talk about the underground club Dead Poets Society, which he founded when he was a student at school and taught him to “suck the marrow out of life.” Inspired by their cool and rebellious teacher, the boys restart their club, even though they know they will be severely punished by the school if they are caught.

Henry David Thoreau's “Marrow” quote is meant to arouse passion and inspire, but Keating, as one of the most self-indulgent writers in American literature, actually used this quote. He inadvertently proves himself to be the villain of the story. Far from being an enlightened intellectual, all his advice is simply, “Do what you want, no matter what tradition or authority says.”

An “extraordinary” life is one in which you realize your passions and desires, your true self. All of this culminates in one of the boys committing suicide after his comically strict father forbids him from pursuing acting. That passion was encouraged by Keating.

The school throws Keating under the bus, but the final scene shows that his noble spirit lives on in the boys. They openly rebelled against their principal, standing on his desk and reciting Whitman's “O, Captain!” My captain! ” as a pledge of allegiance to Keating and his philosophy. (Related article: 'Unsafe': Swifts demand Taylor Swift 'break up' with Travis Kelce over 'red flag' behavior at Super Bowl)

The message is clear. It's a strange dialectic in which Keating represents progress, while the school, parents and traditions all cling to the darkness in an attempt to destroy him. But it's too melodramatic to the point of absurdity. The boy's suicide came quite suddenly, after a brief quarrel with his father about acting, and a newfound (and perhaps temporary) obsession. That doesn't happen without serious pre-existing mental issues, which are never played out in the movie. Is it okay for a father to be that strict? The reasonable answer is probably not. But it's also not the job of self-righteous teachers to get in the way of parents' clear wishes.

All of this is reminiscent of the anti-trans emotional blackmail tactics that medical ideologues are currently using against parents. “Would you rather have a dead son or a living daughter?”

However, the idea of ​​“being yourself'' and “following your dreams'' may have been a naive but romantic concept in the early 1990s. But he is 30 years later and we are seeing the consequences of this ideology become extreme. The answer is not to return to the rigid traditions of a bygone era, but it is good to remember that there are actually more important aspects to individualism than simple self-actualization.

It's hard to imagine that the thousands of young Swifties who discovered this film would view it critically, but given its gross absurdity, it would open them up to more “timeless” notions of individualism and the good life. There is a possibility of pulling it back.