KEATING: A man is not very tired, he is exhausted¹. And don't use very sad, use- Come on, Mr. Overstreet, you twerp.

KNOX: Morose²?

KEATING: Exactly! Morose. Now, language was developed for one endeavor, and that is? Mr. Anderson? Come on! Are you a man or an amoeba?

KEATING: Mr. Perry?

NEIL: Uh, to communicate.

KEATING: No! To woo women. Today we're talking about William Shakespeare.

BOY: Oh, God!

KEATING: I know. A lot of you looked forward to this about as much as you look forward to root canal work. We're gonna talk about Shakespeare as someone who writes something very interesting. Now, many of you have seen Shakespeare done very much like this: "O Titus, bring your friend hither." But if any of you have seen Mr. Marlon Brando, you know, Shakespeare can be different. "Friend, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears." You can also imagine, maybe, John Wayne as Macbeth going, "Well, is this a dagger³ I see before me?"

KEATING: "Dogs, sir? Oh, not just now. I do enjoy a good dog once in a while, sir. You can have yourself a three-course meal from one dog. Start with your canine⁴ crudités; go to your Fido flambé for main course and for dessert, a Pekingese parfait. And you can pick your teeth with a little paw."

KEATING: Why do I stand up here? Anybody? 

CHARLIE: To feel taller.

KEATING: No!

KEATING: Thank you for playing, Mr. Dalton. I stand upon my desk to remind myself that we must constantly look at things in a different way. You see, the world looks very different from up here. You don't believe me? Come see for yourself. Come on. Come on! Just when you think you know something, you have to look at it in another way. Even though it may seem silly or wrong, you must try! Now, when you read, don't just consider what the author thinks. Consider what you think. Boys, you must strive to find your own voice. Because the longer you wait to begin, the less likely you are to find it at all. Thoreau said, "Most men lead lives of quiet desperation." Don't be resigned to that. Break out! Don't just walk off the edge like lemmings. Look around you. There! There you go, Mr. Priske. Thank you! Yes! Dare to strike out and find new ground. Now, in addition to your essays, I would like you to compose a poem of your own, an original work. That's right! You have to deliver it aloud in front of the class on Monday. Bonne chance, gentlemen. Mr. Anderson? Don't think that I don't know that this assignment scares the hell out of you, you mole⁵.

妙词佳句，活学活用

1. twerp

If you call someone twerp, you are insulting them and saying that they are silly or stupid. 无用之人，蠢人。
在口语和俚语里表示类似意思的词还有很多，如：imbecile，moron，jerk，fool， idiot等等。这些都是在电影里经常听到的单词。

2. woo

这个词有好几个用法值得探讨。
a. If a man woos a woman, he spends time with her and tries to persuade her to marry him.（男人）求爱、求婚，这是一种稍微有点老式的语言。
e.g.: The penniless author successfully wooed and married Fanny.
b. If you woo people, you try to encourage them to help you, support you, or vote for you, for example by promising⁶ them things which they would like. 争取支持，引诱、诱惑。
e.g.: They wooed customers by offering low interest rates.
All the candidates wooed the voters before the election.

3. scare the hell out of sb

这是口语中极常用的一个句子，意思是“吓坏某人”。表示“把某人吓坏了”还有一个表达是：Scare the bejesus out of sb。 如：When did you come into the room? You scare the hell out of me!