How we cite our quotes: All quotations are from Dead Poets Society.
Quote #1
MOTHER: Now remember, keep your shoulders back. (She adjusts his tie.)
The son in question seems no more than a grade-schooler, and he looks pretty nervous. The film opens on this quote for good reason: it deals pretty heavily with themes of familial pressure and expectation. No one at Welton is exempt from these pressures, even the youngest among them.
Quote #2
MR. PERRY: Hello, Mr. Nolan. This is our youngest, Todd.
HEADMASTER NOLAN: Mr. Anderson, you have some big shoes to fill, young man. Your brother was one of our finest.
Poor Todd. He can't even get a word out before someone compares him to his older brother, who was apparently quite the star at Welton. Even his new roommate seems impressed by the family pedigree. At a place like Welton, some families are legacies, i.e. deeply established alumni. By reminding viewers that Welton is old and full of these legacies, the film is giving us a sense of just how deeply family is part of the students' daily lives.
Quote #3
HEADMASTER NOLAN: Neil, we expect great things from you this year.
NEIL: Thank you, sir.
MR. PERRY: Well, he won't disappoint, right, Neil?
NEIL: I'll do my best, sir.
Mr. Perry wastes no time reminding Neil that he will not be a disappointment. Unlike Todd, Neil isn't a legacy. He instead deals with familial pressure because of his parents' hope that he will succeed where they did not. While he doesn't have a brother to live up to, he has something even trickier: his father's dreams. And those are clearly pretty big dreams.