The play Twelve Angry Men by Reginald Rose should be read in schools. The play takes place during the 1950s, and is about a jury comprised of white males. In the trial, the defendant, a teenage boy, is on trial for murdering his father after he claims his father abused him. Like everyone, all the jurors have some prejudices about the defendant and opinions of the case before they begin to deliberate. While these twelve men try to reach a unanimous decision, some jurors are unwilling to change their opinions that are based on their prejudices against the defendant, and others are easily persuaded agree to either side of the argument. Twelve Angry Men by Reginald Rose should be read in schools because it contains a powerful message in simple English, it shows the powerful effects of one person in a group, and the play teaches the reader about the U.S legal system. Even though this play only contains 73 pages, the
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At the beginning of the deliberation, Juror 8 is one of the few members of the jury feel sympathy because of his difficult childhood and his father’s continuous abuse and believes “That’s not a very good start” and thinks “maybe [the jury] owe him a few words” (13). Because feels sympathy towards the defendant and is passionate about giving him a fair trial. The first time the jury voted whether they believe the defendant is guilty or not guilty, all jurors except Juror 8 agreed to a guilty verdict. But before they voted a second time, Juror 8 said believes “there’s enough doubt to make us wonder whether he was there at all during the time the murder took place” (40) and as a result, two more jurors changed their vote to not guilty. Juror 8 is able to convince the other jurors to put aside their biases and prejudices opinions, and base their vote on the evidence presented during the
At the beginning of the deliberation, Juror 8 is one of the few members of the jury feel sympathy because of his difficult childhood and his father’s continuous abuse and believes “That’s not a very good start” and thinks “maybe [the jury] owe him a few words” (13). Because feels sympathy towards the defendant and is passionate about giving him a fair trial. The first time the jury voted whether they believe the defendant is guilty or not guilty, all jurors except Juror 8 agreed to a guilty verdict. But before they voted a second time, Juror 8 said believes “there’s enough doubt to make us wonder whether he was there at all during the time the murder took place” (40) and as a result, two more jurors changed their vote to not guilty. Juror 8 is able to convince the other jurors to put aside their biases and prejudices opinions, and base their vote on the evidence presented during the