SCOPES MONKEY TRIAL

1. SCOPES MONKEY TRIAL

2. Objectives To understand what the Scopes Monkey Trial revealed about the divide in US culture during the 1920s To understand the lasting impact of the Scopes Monkey Trial on the US

3. Background Information During the 19thcentury, Charles Darwin’s evolutionary theories regarding the origins of man suggested that human creation was part of a gradual scientific process that took place over millions of years This contrasted and went against traditional Christian beliefs that the world was created in 6 days and that Adam and Eve were the first humans

4. Divisions within Christianity Even within Christianity, there was a huge debate about evolution Some Christians accepted the ideas concerning evolution and suggested that it was possible to be a Christian and also believe in evolution. They argued that every word in the Bible could not be taken literally Others Fundamental Christians rejected this and argued that the Bible should be taken as literal.

5. 1925 Butler Act In 1925, the State of Tennessee passed the Butler Act, which banned the teaching of evolution in the classroom As a result, the American Civil Liberties Union asked for a Tennessee teacher who had taught evolution to come forward as a test case against the law This happened when John Scopes, a Dayon, Tennessee teacher, admitted to teaching evolution in his classes Some in Dayton also supported a trial there because it would help to publicize their community.

7. John Scopes

8. Williams Jennings Bryan The lawyer for the anti-evolutionary side was William Jennings Bryan Bryant previously has run as the US Democratic nominee for president three times He also served as Woodrow Wilson’s Secretary of State in the 1910s, but resigned because of his opposition to US entry into WWI He was especially known for his great oratory skills and his support of policies thought to benefit the common man

9. Bryan’s Opposition to Evolution One of the key reasons why Bryan was opposed to evolution as a scientific theory was that he felt it led to SOCIAL DARWINISM, the idea that some races are superior to others In fact, Bryan argued that one of the main reasons why WWI started was because of the German belief in Social Darwinism

10. William Jennings Bryan

11. Clarence Darrow The lawyer for the defense was Clarence Darrow, one of the most famous trial lawyers in America at the time The choice of Bryan and Darrow as the top lawyers for sides highlighted the fact that this case would receive national coverage.

12. Clarence Darrow

13. It was almost a foregone conclusion that Scopes would be found guilty of breaking the law At the same time, the national press viewed the case as an opportunity to ridicule what it thought to be the backwardness of fundamentalist religion, rural tradition, Southern culture, and William Jennings Bryan

14. A Circus Atmosphere

15. Darrow and Bryan

16. Cartoon From the Period

17. A Public Spectacle

18. Press Ridicule

19. Press Depiction of Bryan

20. THE VERDICT Scopes was found guilty of violating Tennessee’s Butler Act and was fined 100 dollars Later, however, the verdict was overturned on a technicality

21. What the Impact of the Trials Although Scopes lost the case, the national press viewed the trial as a victory of science and modernism against tradition and science According to their interpretation, Darrow had humiliated Bryan, who died shortly after the trial ended This is the interpretation that is depicted in the most famous Hollywood movie of the event—Inherit the Wind

22. What happened to the Key Figures? Bryan died shortly after the trial ended in 1925 due to combination of fatigue and diabetes. He was buried in Arlington National Cemetery Clarence Darrow died of heart disease in 1938 John Scopes later worked for the oil industry and was baptized into the Catholic Church; he died in 1970

23. Recently, however, historians and others have begun to take a more critical look at the event The Scopes Monkey was a clash between science and religion It was a clash between modern ideas and traditional It was also represented a division in America between rural and urban society

24. WHAT IT WAS NOT It did not represent the death of fundamental Christianity in America. In fact, it continued to thrive and grow in many parts of the country following the Scopes Monkey Trial The trial did not end the debate in America between religion and evolutionary scientific theory, even to this day.

25. 2012 Poll

26. Objectives Revisited To understand what the Scopes Monkey Trial revealed about the divide in US culture during the 1920s To understand the lasting impact of the Scopes Monkey Trial on the US