In what ways is Dead Poets Society about the conflict between realism and idealism?

Society as we know, has been shaped by numerous conflicts in the past, some between nations, some between races, and some between the interests and issues of certain people. Dead Poets Society in particular, is about the conflict between realism and idealism. For example Welton Academy is a school that is deep-rooted in realism, the teachers are all realists and in turn did not allow the students to think for themselves, but taught them what …

…characters in Dead Poets Society is based around this; Neil's conflict between his acting and his father destroyed him; Knox's infatuation with Chris can't be realized because she is already with someone and Keating's ambitious quest to teach his students to think for themselves ended in the death of Neil. The human world is based around conflict of numerous sorts, and Dead Poets Society is a shining example of the conflict between realism and idealism.