The Scopes trial : a brief history with documents / Jeffrey P. Moran.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Moran, Jeffrey P.

Series:

Bedford series in history and culture

The Bedford series in history and culture

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Scopes, John Thomas--Trials, litigation, etc.

Scopes, John Thomas.

Evolution (Biology)--Study and teaching--Law and legislation--Tennessee.

Evolution (Biology).

Evolution (Biology)--Study and teaching--Law and legislation.

Tennessee.

Physical Description:

x, 230 pages : illustrations ; 21 cm.

Place of Publication:

Boston : Bedford/St. Martin's, [2002]

Summary:

The Scopes trial shocked America. Tennessee schoolteacher John Scopes brought the question of teaching evolution in schools to every dinner table, and it remains an essential topic in any course on American History, the History of Education, and Religious History. This volume's lively interpretative introduction provides an analysis of the trial and its impact on the moral fiber of the country and the educational system, and examines the race and gender issues that shook out of the debate. The editor has excerpted the crucial exchanges from the trial transcript itself, and includes these along with reactions to the trial, taken from newspaper reports, letters, and magazine articles. Telling political cartoons and evocative photographs add a colorful dimension to this collection, while a chronology of events, questions for consideration, and a bibliography provide strong pedagogical support.

Contents:

Part 1 Introduction: The Scopes Trial and the Birth of Modern America 1

Evolution before the 1920s 3

The Struggle against "Modernity" and Modernism 8

William Jennings Bryan and the Antievolution Argument 13

The Butler Bill and the Fight for the Public Schools 20

Making a Test Case 24

Opening Day: The Attorneys and Their Strategies 28

Days Two through Four: Religious Freedom vs. Legislative Authority 33

Days Five and Six: Experts and Outsiders 39

And on the Seventh Day, Bryan Took the Stand 46

Aftermath: From Scopes to Creationism 50

South vs. North or Country vs. City? Region and Ruralism in the Antievolution Conflict 56

The Role of the Schools: Academic Freedom vs. Majority Rule 59

Race and Evolution 66

Women and Gender in the Scopes Trial 70

Part 2 The Scopes Trial Day by Day: Transcript and Commentary 73

1. First Day's Proceedings: Friday, July 10, 1925 74

Partial Text of the Butler Law (Transcript) 74

Clarence Darrow Examines a Potential Juror (Transcript) 75

Henry M. Hyde, Jury Pious, Dayton Hot, July 11, 1925 77

2. Second Day's Proceedings: Monday, July 13, 1925 79

Court Opened with a Prayer by Reverend Moffett of Rhea County (Transcript) 80

Indictment Read (Transcript) 80

Defense and Prosecution Dispute Butler Law's Constitutionality (Transcript) 81

Darrow's Major Speech in Defense of Religious Liberty (Transcript) 87

H. L. Mencken, Darrow's Speech Great but Futile, July 14, 1925 93

3. Third Day's Proceedings: Tuesday, July 14, 1925 94

Defense Objects to Prayers; Prosecution Defends Practice (Transcript) 94

Nashville Tennessean, Courtroom Prayer Defended, July 21, 1925 98

4. Fourth Day's Proceedings: Wednesday, July 15, 1925 99

Darrow Proud of Agnosticism (Transcript) 99

Raulston Rules on Motion to Quash Indictment; Cases Outlined (Transcript) 100

Defense Pleads Not Guilty; Cases Outlined (Transcript) 102

Examination of Howard Morgan, One of Scopes's Students (Transcript) 103

W. O. McGeehan, Trial Shows Wisdom of Youth, October 1925 105

5. Fifth Day's Proceedings: Thursday, July 16, 1925 107

Defense Pleads for Expert Testimony (Transcript) 108

"Plain Sense" of Law Makes Experts Unnecessary, Argues Prosecution (Transcript) 112

William Jennings Bryan's First Speech (Transcript) 116

Dudley Field Malone Replies to Bryan (Transcript) 126

Attorney General Stewart Answers Malone (Transcript) 131

Joseph Wood Krutch, Fairness Lies on the Defense's Side, July 29, 1925 134

6. Sixth Day's Proceedings: Friday, July 17, 1925 136

Raulston Rejects Expert Testimony; Darrow Offends (Transcript) 136

New Republic, Courts Should Not Rule over Legislature, July 8, 1925 137

7. Seventh Day's Proceedings: Monday, July 20, 1925 139

Darrow Objects to "Read Your Bible" Banner (Transcript) 139

Darrow Questions William Jennings Bryan on the Stand (Transcript) 143

Did the Whale Swallow Jonah? (Transcript) 145

Could Joshua Command the Sun to Stand Still? (Transcript) 146

Did the Flood Wipe Out Civilization? (Transcript) 149

Darrow Questions Bryan on Genesis (Transcript) 153

New York Times, Laughter at Bryan's Expense, July 21, 1925 160

8. Eighth Day's Proceedings: Tuesday, July 21, 1925 162

Court Strikes Bryan's Testimony (Transcript) 162

Jury Reaches a Verdict; Scopes Speaks (Transcript) 164

Farewell Remarks (Transcript) 166

H. L. Mencken, Battle Now Over; Genesis Triumphant and Ready for New Jousts, July 18, 1925 168

Part 3 The Scopes Trial and the Culture of the 1920s: The Documents 171

1. Cartoonists Draw the Scopes Trial 171

Dorman, No Wonder the Monkeys Are Worried, June 29, 1925 172

Rogers, Disbelievers in the Evolution Theory, June 20, 1925 173

Cross, Unduly Excited, June 25, 1925 174

Cargill, Education in the Higher Branches, 1925 175

Alley, The Light of Economic Liberty, May 7, 1925 176

Baltimore Sun, Waiting, July 17, 1925 178

Alley, What Manner of Material So Enduring? May 3, 1925 179

2. Race and the Scopes Trial 180

Chicago Defender, If Monkeys Could Speak, May 23, 1925 180

W. E. B. Du Bois, Dayton Is America, September 1925 182

Reverend John W. Norris, African Methodist Episcopal Church Minister Stands with Bryan, October 1925 184

P. W. Chamberlain, Racial Hierarchy Proves Evolution, July 13, 1925 185

George W. Hunter, Race and Eugenics in A Civic Biology, 1914 186

3. Educational Freedom and the Scopes Trial 189

William Jennings Bryan, Who Shall Control Our Schools? June 1925 189

American Civil Liberties Union, Postwar Threats to Academic Freedom, 1931 192

American Federation of Teachers, Concern over Intolerance, July 18, 1925 193

American Association of University Professors, University Faculty Define Academic Freedom, 1915 195

R. S. Woodworth, Tennessee Can Dictate Curriculum, Not Answers, August 29, 1925 197

4. The Scopes Trial and the "New Woman" 199

Father Hugh L. McMenamin, A Catholic Priest Argues Women Are Surrendering Their Moral Duty, October 1927 199

Regina Malone, A Flapper Responds to Attacks on Youths, July 1926 201

Mrs. E. P. Blair, A Tennessee Woman Calls for Battle against Evolutionist Outsiders, June 29, 1925 202

Mrs. Jesse Sparks, A Tennessee Mother Writes to Support the Butler Act, July 3, 1925 204

5. Religious Alternatives in the 1920s 205

Sarah Comstock, Performing for the Lord: Sister Aimee Semple McPherson, December 1927 205

Bruce Barton, Jesus as Business Executive, 1925 208

6. An Invasion of "Outsiders"? 210

Reverend John Roach Straton, A Fundamentalist Defends Tennessee against Outside Invasion, December 26, 1925 210

Vine Deloria Jr., A Modern Native American Scholar Decries the Invasion of European Science, 1995 212

A Chronology of Events Related to the Scopes Trial (1859-1999) 215.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 220-221) and index.

ISBN:

0312249195

0312294263

OCLC:

49339727