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Inherit The Wind Essay

Decent Essays

In the play “Inherit the Wind” by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee, the defense faces numerous societal injustices, which is why they never had a chance to win the case. One example of the town’s bias is presented through the town’s love for Matthew Harrison Brady. A second example is the extreme conformist and pious attitude of the town’s people. The last instance is the narrow-mindedness of the judge and the jury, which resulted in an unfair trial. In conclusion, the defense suffered through many unfair circumstances throughout the drama “Inherit the Wind.”
The first instance of the town’s prejudice is the overall affection for Brady, the prosecuting attorney. This is …show more content…

The religious views of town on a whole are second example why Cates, the defendant, would without doubt be found guilty. The first instance of the religious zealots in Hillsboro was when news came that Henry Drummond, the agnostic, was to be the defense attorney; this news brought reactions such as “Henry Drummond is an agent of darkness. We won’t let him in the town!” from Reverend Brown, and Drummond probably wouldn’t have been admitted had it not been for Brady’s encouragement to do so. Additionally, the second occasion of religiousness was throughout the trial the city was scattered with signs such as, “Darwin is wrong!” and, “Save our schools from sin,” and a gigantic banner that hung over the entrance of the courthouse that read, “Read your Bible!” Lastly, the night before the trial Reverend Brown held a city-wide prayer meeting on the courthouse lawn, at this meeting Brown preached the word of Genesis, which was followed by numerous amen’s and cheering, Brown also called down a curse on any people who believed in anything other then the Bible, or asked to pity those that did, including his own daughter. All in all, the defense never had a chance to win due to the fact that Hillsboro was incredibly religious.
Lastly, the close-mindedness of the judge and jury also ensured Cates’s guilty fate. While selecting the jury Drummond is forced to pick jury members like Bannister who

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