In his mid thirties, E.K. Hornbeck is a brilliant newspaper columnist for the Baltimore Herald and is sent to Hillsboro to cover Cates’ trial. His character shares traits with H. L. Mencken, a newspaper columnist for the Baltimore Sun who covered the Scopes trial. Although Hornbeck, like Mencken, is cynical, […]
Read more Character Analysis E. K. HornbeckCharacter Analysis Henry Drummond
Henry Drummond, the deuteragonist, or character second in importance in Inherit the Wind, can be considered the hero of the play. Functioning as the mouthpiece for Lawrence and Lee, Drummond fights for man’s right to think as well as “the right to be wrong.” He saves the townspeople of Hillsboro […]
Read more Character Analysis Henry DrummondCharacter Analysis Matthew Harrison Brady
Brady is a well-known politician (he ran for the presidency of the United States three times), an excellent orator, a fundamentalist, and a leader of the crusade against the theory of evolution. When he learns the Butler Law is being challenged in Hillsboro, he volunteers to prosecute the defendant, Cates. […]
Read more Character Analysis Matthew Harrison BradySummary and Analysis Act III: Scene 1
Summary The next day, everyone returns to the courtroom to hear the verdict, which is to be broadcast on WGN radio station. Cates is found guilty and is fined $100. In his statement to the court, he vows to continue to oppose the Butler Law. Brady has won the case […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Act III: Scene 1Summary and Analysis Act II: Scene 2
Summary Two days later, the trial is well underway. Howard, one of Cates’ former students, takes the witness stand, followed by Rachel Brown. Because Rachel is obviously upset, Cates tells Drummond not to cross-examine her. When Drummond calls his scientific witnesses to the stand, Brady objects, and the judge determines […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Act II: Scene 2Summary and Analysis Act II: Scene 1
Summary The same evening, the townspeople congregate on the courthouse lawn for Reverend Brown’s prayer meeting. All the major characters are present, except for Cates. Brady sits on the wooden platform. Drummond and Hornbeck are at the edge of the crowd. When Brown becomes overzealous as he prays and asks […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Act II: Scene 1Summary and Analysis Act I: Scene 2
Summary Spectators crowd the hot courtroom several days later as Brady and Drummond choose the last two jurors for Cates’ trial. Throughout the questioning, friction between Brady and Drummond becomes apparent as they haggle about every issue. Their bickering makes clear that this trial is not just about Cates’ guilt […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Act I: Scene 2Summary and Analysis Act I: Scene 1
Summary The setting is Hillsboro, a small rural Tennessee town, during the summer of an unknown year. Bert Cates, a sophomore science teacher, has been arrested and jailed for violating the Butler Law, which prohibits the teaching of evolutionary theory in public schools. Rachel Brown, a fellow teacher and his […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Act I: Scene 1Character List
Matthew Harrison Brady The prosecuting attorney. He is a talented orator and an experienced politician. He is a defender of fundamentalism and a self-proclaimed expert on the Bible. He is pompous and self-righteous and is reduced to a tragic figure and ultimately dies after Drummond questions him on the witness […]
Read more Character ListAbout Inherit the Wind
Introduction Lawrence and Lee wrote Inherit the Wind nearly thirty years after the Scopes Monkey trial. Although the basis of the play is the Scopes trial, the play itself is not a historical retelling of the events. Instead, the play is fiction. Each of the two main characters, Matthew Harrison […]
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