Remember the “Monkey Trial”?

Many of you know that I grew up in East Tennessee, very close to Dayton, the site of The Scopes Trial, nicknamed the ‘Monkey Trial’. I must admit, however, that I still know very little about the issues around the trial except that it involved teaching evolution. I went inside the courthouse once. I have never seen any of the many movies based on the play about the trial. The play is Inherit the Wind. Why? For one thing, the trial was certainly not brought up in any school I attended. I couldn’t keep the opposing attorneys straight-who was arguing for what side. What little I knew about it embarrassed me.

Now, however, there is a new book about the trial by Brenda Wineapple entitled Keeping the Faith: God, Democracy, and the Trial That Riveted a Nation. Just when some people thought nothing new could be said about the Scopes Trial, Wineapple takes a compelling look at the legal issues, the opposing attorneys, the people for and against teaching evolution and the historical context in which the trial took place. She brings up information that most people don’t know and corrects misconceptions others gained from only watching the movie! And in case anyone thinks the book is about the past, it isn’t. As Jon Meacham writes, “Brenda Wineapple’s wonderful account of the Scopes trial sheds light not only the the battles of the past but on the struggles of the present.”

In case you are really interested in the Scopes Trial, which I have suddenly become, tune in to this brief but fascinating footage of the trial in Dayton, Tennessee.