When:
Lookups spiked on August 12, 2014.
Why:
After hearing the shocking news of Robin Williams's death, many people recalled his portrayal of an inspirational English teacher in Dead Poets Society. In the film, he urges his students to live with passion and to have extraordinary lives by using the Latin phrase carpe diem.
The scene is especially poignant because the teacher tells them that carpe diem is the wish expressed by the students' long-dead predecessors - students who had studied at the same school many years earlier - a message of inspiration and example from those who have passed away.
Carpe diem means "the enjoyment of the pleasures of the moment without concern for the future." It is usually translated as "seize the day"; in Latin it literally means "pluck the day."
