Character Analysis
The Killjoy
This dude may share a last name with Christopher Nolan, but it's clear that ye olde headmaster isn't going to go running off and creating works of (dark n' disturbing) art anytime soon. In fact, he's not going to go running off and creating anything—or running, for that matter. Dude is pretty pleased to stay exactly where he is…and his #1 goal is to make everything stay pretty much the same.
We first meet the Headmaster during his speech, where he emphasizes the four pillars of Welton:
NOLAN: Gentlemen, what are the Four Pillars?
STUDENTS: Tradition. Honor. Discipline. Excellence.
And boy does he live by 'em. He emphasizes to Neil and Todd how high his expectations are for their performance, and makes sure that Mr. Keating knows how little he thinks of his less-than-traditional teaching style.
MR. KEATING: I always thought the idea of education was to learn to think for yourself.
NOLAN: At these boys' age? Not on your life!
Clearly he's not a big proponent of any kind of "free thinking" going on in his school. He's understandably furious, then, when Charlie publishes the DPS article. He's even less amused with Charlie's phone-call-from-God prank.
And, when Neil dies, Headmaster Nolan decides to squash the DPS for good. He forces the boys to sign a statement against Mr. Keating, and even resorts to the paddle for those that refuse. (We're so glad it's not the 1950s anymore.)
Ironically enough, he used to be an English teacher (just like Mr. Keating), and it's he who takes Mr. Keating's place at the head of the English class. But unlike Mr. Keating, he doesn't believe in the power of poetry—and he certainly doesn't have a grand epiphany when he fills Mr. Keating's shoes. He even asks the boys to read from the introduction to the textbook, the same introduction that Mr. Keating had them discard.
Headmaster Nolan's main purpose is basically to provide some contrast to Mr. Keating. They really are opposites, after all, and neither one changes their mind or stance by the end. Headmaster Nolan remains a killjoy up until the final scene, when he admonishes the boys for saluting their former teacher.