Scopes Trial: Photographic History [Paperback]

Edward Caudill (Author), Edward J. Larson (Contributor), Jesse Fox Mayshark (Contributor)

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

On the 75th anniversary of the Scopes trial, Caudill (Univ. of Tennessee) and Larson (Univ. of Georgia) have surrounded fascinating photographs of the trial with excellent, accessible essays on its history and aftermath. Caudill shows that Tennessee's Butler Act, which outlawed the teaching of evolution in the state's public schools, was passed to appease conservative constituents. With a nominal fine as its punishment, it was not intended as a major law. However, the town of Dayton, TN, desperate for an economic boost, used a contrived violation of the law to promote itself. The book does an excellent job of placing the trial in context and illuminating the personalities of Clarence Darrow and William Jennings Bryan. The endnotes reference the major works on the trial for further research. The photographs and captions alone are worth the price, showing how the news coverage of the trial transformed a town and shamed a state. Larson's afterword demonstrates that religious fundamentalists and the American Civil Liberties Union both gained from the trial. The facts are more complex, he argues, than shown in the play/movie Inherit the Wind. Highly recommended for all collections.DHarry Charles, Attorney at Law, St. Louis
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Paperback: 112 pages
• Publisher: Univ Tennessee Press; 1st edition (August 23, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1572330813
• ISBN-13: 978-1572330818
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 7.9 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #407,797 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A nice collection of photographs with insightful captions, November 8, 2000

By 

Lawrance M. Bernabo (The Zenith City, Duluth, Minnesota) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Scopes Trial: Photographic History (Paperback)

When I was in high school I read L. Sprague de Camp's account of "The Great Monkey Trial," became enamored of H. L. Mencken, and was fascinated with Dudley Field Malone's speech in Dayton. My interest in the Scopes Trial was such that eventually I used it as my dissertation topic. Since that time I have continued to collect materials about the trial and have followed contemporary versions of the 1925 battle between science and religion with quite some interest. It is certainly nice to have such an extension collection of photographs from the trial, especially since I have not seen most of the 38 shots. For me the best of the "new" photographs is of Rabbi Herman Rosennasser delivering a mock class in biblical translation. Having heard of the rabbi's fascinating translation of Genesis from Hebrew into German and then into English to make its meaning compatible with the theory of evolution. Except for shots of the monkeys that were brought to Dayton, all of the photographs are full page shots covering all of the major players and the fun both inside and outside of the Rhea County Courthouse. There seems to have been a concerted effort not to include a lot of the traditional shots (e.g., Judge Raulston and the jury posing outside the courthouse).

The introduction by Edward Caudill, author of "Darwinian Myths: The Legends and Misues of a Theory" provides a 20-page of the drama in Dayton that covers the passage of the Butler Act, the ACLU's decision to intervene, the defense putting Bryan on trial and the legacy of the case. It is a concise coverage of the multi-faceted trial, certainly superior to the mostly erroneous treatments found in so many reference books that confuse the play/film "Inherit the Wind" with the actual trial. Jesse Fox Mayshark, a senior editor of a Knoxville weekly newspaper, provides an afterword "Seventy-five Years of Scopes" that provides some nice insights into what the trial has meant to the State of Tennessee. Since the volume is published by the University of Tennessee Press this is not particularly suprising, but it is a topic that has been pretty much dismissed in the past and I found it quite interesting.

What I really liked were the photo captions provided by Edward J. Larson, who won the 1998 Pulitizer prize for history for his book on the Scopes Trial, "Summer for the Gods." Whereas Caudill provides the groundwork for the photographs, Larson provides the detail work. Certainly it would be worth your while to have read Larson's book before you go through these photographs. The more you know about the Scopes Trial the more you will appreciate what you are seeing and reading in this photographic history.

Personally I would have liked to have seen portraits of my hero Malone and A. T. Stewart, the true head of the prosecution in Dayton, because the importance of those two men in the trial is always underplayed in the literature. The most glaring photographic ommissions of course would be the celebrated cross-examination of William Jennings Bryan by Clarence Darrow that took place on a platform on the courthouse lawn. I have seen a half-dozen photographs of this infamous confrontation and am surprised one is not included. But since the photos came from the collections of W.C. Robinson (he ran the drug store in Dayton where the plan for the trial was hatched) and Sue K. Hicks, I have to temper my disappointment. Overall this is certainly a first class presentation of a collection of photographs.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Scopes Trial as a Local Public Relations Event, February 7, 2001

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Donald Mitchell "Jesus Loves You!" (Thanks for Providing My Reviews over 109,000 Helpful Votes Globally) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Scopes Trial: Photographic History (Paperback)

Lost in the many legendary treatments of the Scopes trial are the details of the local context. Every event of mythic proportions about ideas also involves ordinary people in real surroundings. This brief photographic history provides that background, while correcting many of the popular misconceptions about the trial. This book contains many worthwhile details of how the case came to occur in Dayton, Tennessee and the lasting effects on Tennessee. The legislature continued to toy with evolution as a subject, even in the 1990s.

The case itself was pretty much a put-up job. Dayton had been on the economic skids for years. The ACLU wanted a test case of the new Tennessee criminal statute barring the teaching of evolution. Whoever prosecuted someone under the law could make a few extra dollars for the local community with the expected publicity. The local leaders in Dayton asked the new teacher, John Scopes, if he would be willing to go along. He was, and the rest is history.

The photographs capture a sense of the town at the time, and the festival atmosphere. They are not particularly outstanding photographs, but do add a note of reality to something that is otherwise very abstract to many of us. The captions that go with them are quite extensive.

I enjoyed the introduction by Edward Caudill that filled in many gaps in my understanding of the trial's background.

I graded the book down one star for the considerable repetition among the introduction, the captions, and the afterword. With more editing, this could have been a more compact and vital volume.

Like many important events where ideas clash, the physical reality is less important than the judicial precedent of contesting the right of ideas to be expressed in a few society. If you had a photographic history of the Magna Carta, the document itself and its application would still be the main story. The same is true of the photographs around the Scopes trial. The publicity around the case had more significance than the trial itself. It served to rally both scientific thinkers and fundamental religionists to their respective causes.

How can public debate advance understanding and cooperation rather than division? That question seems to be the heritage of this famous trial. In today's world, abortion seems to be playing a similar dividing role. What is missing to create progress on such a powerfully troubling issue?

May you always find the words to frame better questions, that reveal new understanding for all!

4.0 out of 5 stars Neat Coverage Of One The Most Famous Trials Ever, August 15, 2011

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William G. Pratt (Connecticut, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Scopes Trial: Photographic History (Paperback)

"The Scopes Trial" is a summary of the 1925 John Scopes "Monkey Trial" which brought into question the passing of an "anti-evolution law" in the state of Tennessee.
The book is organized into 3 parts: The first is a background of the trial, covering it's origins, it's backstory (very unlike the entertaining yet inaccurate film representation in "Inherit The Wind"), and it's outcome. The second part is where you'll find the "meat" of the book - a collection of photographs which as far as I am aware you will find nowhere else. And the third part consists of the Afterword, where the impact that the Scopes Trial had on the country and in particular on the state of Tennessee is examined.
I liked this book - the summaries in the front and back sections are factual, concise, and informative. The photographs themselves are fantastic! They really depict the town of Dayton during the trial and help give you the sense of what it was like during those sweltering 6 days in July 1925.
The only reason why I limited this review to 4 stars is quite simply because there are other photographs out there which could have been included. I don't understand why the selection was as limited as it was. However, for the limited selection that there is, this book is a must for anyone interested in the history of the creation-evolution debate and the Scopes Trial in particular.