Plot Summary for
Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1939) More at IMDbPro »

An old classics teacher looks back over his long career, remembering pupils and colleagues, and above all the idyllic courtship and marriage that transformed his life. Written by David Levene {D.S.Levene@durham.ac.uk}

In 1870, Mr. Chipping arrives in the traditional Brookfield Boarding School to give history classes in the lower school. He has a rough first day with the indiscipline of the class, and the Headmaster Wetherby advises him that he needs ability to exercise his authority, otherwise he would be fired. He gives a severe punishment to the class achieving the respect of the students. When Wetherby dies in 1888, the old-fashion senior Mr. Chipping expects to be the next headmaster, but he is not promoted. His German colleague and friend Max Staefel invites him to travel on vacations with him to Austria, where he meets the progressive British Katherine. The shy and lonely Mr. Chipping and Katherine fall in love for each other and sooner they get married. Back to Brookfield, the enchantment of Katherine makes Mr. Chips popular with his colleagues and students and he is promoted to housemaster. Katherine makes him believe that he could be the headmaster if he wanted, but she dies in the delivery with their baby. With the beginning of World War I, Mr. Chips is promoted to headmaster until his death after sixty-six years of service to Brookfield. Written by Claudio Carvalho, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

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