Difference between revisions of "Scopes Trial"

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-The trial in 1925 of John Scopes for teaching evolution in Tennessee was a defeat of Darwinism.  The [[ACLU]] and liberal trial lawyer Clarence Darrow brought the Scopes case in the hopes of winning a public relations and legal victory, but in fact [[William Jennings Bryan]] decisively beat them.
-The [[ACLU]] challenged a Tennessee statute, the Butler Act, that imposed a fine for teaching in public school that man descended from more primitive life forms.  The statute did not prohibit teaching most aspects of evolution.  The textbook at issue in the case taught eugenics, including that man supposedly descended from lower life forms and that some racial groups had evolved to more advanced levels than others.
-The textbook also featured the fraudulent [[Piltdown Man]].  At the time, Darwinists claimed that this and eugenics were indisputable science to be taught to students.  The Hollywood version heaped mockery on any argument that teaching evolution could be socially harmful.
-In the real trial, Bryan quoted for the court how Darrow had previously claimed that murder defendants Leopold and Loeb were driven to crime by what they were taught, which was Nietzche's atheistic philosophy.  Bryan quoted Darrow as saying that "Is there any blame attached because somebody took Nietzsche's philosophy seriously and fashioned his life on it? ... The university would be more to blame than he is. ...  Your honor, it is hardly fair to hang a 19-year-old boy for the philosophy that was taught him at the university."
-Bryan was an extraordinary speaker, recognized to be among the best in American history.  Darrow wanted to prevent Bryan from making a persuasive closing argument to the jury, and Darrow searched for another way to try to score points for his side.
-So Darrow stunned the court by requesting to cross-exam Bryan, in the hope that Bryan, like many attorneys, would be a poor witness.  Darrow's attempt was unprecedented, because trial attorneys almost never take the witness stand in their own cases.  Bryan agreed only on the condition that he could cross-examine Darrow.  Based on that agreement, Bryan took the witness stand.
-A witness in a trial is always at a disadvantage, because he can only answer questions that are posed by a hostile adversary.  Attorneys are particularly vulnerable, because their knowledge of the law and tendency to speak in legalese hinder their performance.
-Darrow undoubtedly thought that he could turn Bryan into the proverbial buffoon that liberals wanted.  As the transcript reveals, however, Bryan got the better of his accuser.  Bryan repeatedly turned the tables on Darrow's questions, which the large courtroom audience found amusing at Darrow's expense.  Here is a sample:<ref>http://www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/scopes/day7.htm</ref>
-Bryan--These gentlemen have not had much chance--they did not come here to try this case. They came here to try revealed religion. I am here to defend it and they can ask me any question they please.
-Judge--All right.
-(Applause in audience.)
-…
-Bryan--Those [the audience] are the people whom you insult.
-Darrow--You insult every man of science and learning in the world because he does believe in your fool religion.
-....
-Darrow: Wait until you get to me [N.B. this apparently refers to Darrow's agreement to be a witness]. Do you know anything about how many people there were in Egypt 3,500 years ago, or how many people there were in China 5,000 years ago?
-Bryan --No.
-Darrow--Have you ever tried to find out?
-Bryan--No, sir. You are the first man I ever heard of who has been in interested in it. (Laughter in audience.)
-Darrow--Mr. Bryan, am I the first man you ever heard of who has been interested in the age of human societies and primitive man?
-Bryan--You are the first man I ever heard speak of the number of people at those different periods.
-Darrow--Where have you lived all your life?
-Bryan--Not near you. (Laughter and applause in audience.)
-Darrow tried again and again to trap Bryan, but struck out each time.  A later exchange ended, once again, with the audience laughing at Darrow:
-Darrow--I will read it to you from the Bible: "And the Lord God said unto the serpent, because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life." Do you think that is why the serpent is compelled to crawl upon its belly?
-Bryan--I believe that.
-Darrow--Have you any idea how the snake went before that time?
-Bryan--No, sir.
-Darrow--Do you know whether he walked on his tail or not?
-Bryan--No, sir. I have no way to know. (Laughter in audience).
-Darrow ended his cross-examination weaker than when he began -- an enormous defeat for any trial attorney.
-The next day, it was Darrow's turn to be cross-examined.  But Darrow stunned the public by giving up rather than upholding his end of the bargain.  Darrow took the unprecedented step of asking the jury for a guilty verdict against his client, the defendant teacher John Scopes.  To save his own skin, Darrow handed over his client!
-The jury gave Darrow exactly what he requested: it found Scopes guilty.  His fine was eliminated on a technicality on appeal.
-== The movie and play ==
-The play ''Inherit the Wind'', and the adapted movie, were loosely based on the Scopes Trial. Several modifications were made; characters names were changed, and many crucial facts were changed. The authors have said that the play was really an attempt to mock Senator Joseph McCarthy, and to equate anti-communism with anti-intellectualism.<ref>[http://www.onthemedia.org/transcripts/2005/07/08/07]</ref> It featured the popular Spencer Tracy as Clarence Darrow, and even garnered a few Academy Award nominations.
-The movie features an angry mob trying to lynch a jailed teacher; in fact, the ACLU ran advertisements with offers to pay expenses for a teacher to volunteer for the case, and Scopes was never jailed and never paid even a fine.
-The movie portrayed the character based on Bryan as a complete buffoon.  In fact, as shown above, Bryan beat Darrow in the courtroom so convincingly that Darrow surrendered, breaking his own promise to testify.  Even the New York Times article the next day reflected surprise at Darrow's abrupt capitulation. Bryan's death was also portrayed as happening in the courthouse.
-== Aftermath ==
-Bryan, a 65-year-old diabetic lacking in modern treatments, died peacefully in his sleep five days after the conclusion of the Scopes trial.  Bryan's victory in the Scopes trial was a fitting end to a principled, illustrious career.<ref> http://gi.grolier.com/presidents/ea/side/bryan.html</ref> Scopes was only fined $500 for his actions.
-In 1967, Tennessee repealed the Butler Act, and in 1968, the Supreme Court ruled in Epperson v. Arkansas 393 U.S. 97 that such bans on teaching are unconstitutional because they are primarily religious in cause.
-'''Sources:'''  <references/>

Difference between revisions of "Scopes Trial"

Revision as of 19:42, March 18, 2007

Navigation menu

Search