Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
The analysis of the 8 jurors in the twelve angry men
Who are the jurors in 12 angry men
12 Angry Men: Compare & Contrast
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Recommended: The analysis of the 8 jurors in the twelve angry men
The Underlying Theme of 12 Angry Men In the 1950's, Reginald Rose penned his masterpiece, 12 Angry Men. This play introduces us to twelve men of various statures. All of these men are part of the jury who will decide the fate of a young man, who has been accused of murdering his father. At first glance of the testimonies of the witnesses in the trial, the reader, or audience, would probably agree with the norm of the jury on the guilt of the young man. If it weren't for one character in this play, juror No. 8, the deliberations of this trial would have been non-existent. At the end of this story, another juror, No. 3, states his nearly impenetrable opinion, nearly causing a hung jury. After reading or watching this play, the audience has some insight into the fact that despite how unfavourable a persons opinion may be, it is the courage to hold ones ground - sometimes with no other support but from him/herself - that must be recognized as a virtue. This story starts off in the courtroom with the jurors making their way to the deliberation room to talk about and vote on the fate of the accused. A vote is cast to see where they stand with one another on their opinions. The men have various reasons for voting the ways they do. Take, for example, who No. 7 says, "This better be fast. I've got tickets to The Seven Year Itch tonight" , or No. 2 who is "a meek, hesitant man who finds it difficult to maintain any opinions of his own. Easily swayed and usually adopts the opinion of the last person to whom he has spoken", and No. 3 whose son won't talk to him anymore because of his father's bitterness against young people. Some of the other men on the jury believe that "you can't believe a word [people from the slums] say", and since the boy is from the slums, they don't believe his testimony. It is only juror No. 8 who came into the jurors room with a non-bias attitude and who left his personal baggage at the door. He believes that "maybe we owe him a few words", but the others believe that they "don't owe him a thing". The evidence against the accused convinces all the jurors of the boys guilt, except for juror No. 8. The evidence that has convinced the rest of the jurors soon gets analyzed by juror No. 8, which causes the others think twice about their verdict. The reason why juror No. 8 went into such detail about all of the evidence is because "[He] had a peculiar feeling about this trial. Somehow [he] felt that the defense never really conducted a thorough cross-examination. [He] mean[s], [the defense lawyer] was appointed by the court to defend the boy. He hardly seemed interested. Too many questions were left unasked." There were three pieces of evidence that the prosecution brought up, which each on its own, could have probably convinced a jury of the boy's guilt: the obscure knife, and the two witnesses: the old man , the neighbour downstairs, and the woman, the neighbour from across the street. All of these key pieces of evidence were looked over in the jurors room. Nobody but juror No. 8 saw the flaws with each. Take, for example, the rare switch-knife - which we find out to be not-so-rare - that the boy had bought from a local corner store. "The storekeeper identified it and said it was the only one of its kind he had in stock." This testimony had convinced eleven of the jurors until juror No. 8 "swiftly flicks open the blade of a switch-knife and jams it into the table next to the first one (knife). They are exactly alike." After this incident, another juror sided with juror No. 8. Next, the old man's and the woman from across the street's testimonies gets put to their tests. Like juror No. 3 said, "[T]he old man heard the kill yell, 'I'm gonna kill you.' A second later he heard the father's body falling, and he saw the boy running out of the house fifteen seconds after that." With the Jury Room's furniture, juror No. 8 reenacted the scene that would had to have taken place if the old man were to be able to see all he said he did. Juror No. 8 proved that the old man wouldn't have been able to move as quickly as he said he did; thus, he wasn't telling the whole truth. The same went for the woman across the street. Her testimony proved to be the extended truth as well. She said that that she was unable to fall asleep that night and she had looked out the window from her bed and saw that whole murder take place. This testimony seemed unshakable until juror No. 6 said, "You know the woman who testified that she saw the killing wears glasses." Then asked, "This woman wouldn't wear her eyeglasses to bed, would she?" This statement radiates light on the fact that "[S]he testified that in the midst of her tossing and turning she rolled over and looked casually out the window. The murder was taking place as she looked out, and the lights went out a split second later. She couldn't have had time to put on her glasses"..."I say that she only saw a blur," No. 8 said. These facts changed the most of the jurors verdicts to "not guilty". Near the end of these alterations, it is only the stubborn and bitter juror No. 3 who stands alone. He, too - in enmity - changes his mind to make the verdict a unanimous "Not Guilty". This play shows it audience that although some of us have different and sometimes adverse views, respect for other various opinions must be prominent. We can try to change the views of others by informing them and by not domineering over them with our opinions. The underlying theme of this play was at one time said by juror No. 9: "It takes a great deal of courage to stand alone."
First off, the settings in the movie are a great deal more fleshed out. In the play, the scene begins with the jurors regarding the judge's final statements concerning the case in the courtroom and then walking out into the jury room. In the movie, the audience is placed in the role of the invisible casual observer, who for perhaps the first 5 minutes of the movie, walks throughout the court building passing other court rooms, lawyers, defendants, security officers, elevators, etc. Not able to remember much about this particular part of the movie, I believe this introductory scene's purpose was to either enhanced the realism of the setting by emphasizing the court building's efficient, business like manner or to provide a timeslot in which to roll the credits for producer, director, stars, etc. The settings aren't only built upon through use of scenery and extras in the movie. Invisible and distant in the play, we see in the movie the judge, bailiff, those witnessing the trial and most importantly of all- the defendant. This is an important change because in the play, we are free to come up with our own unbiased conclusions as to the nature and identity of the defendant, whom we only know to a be a 19 year boy from the slums. Seeing his haggard and worn face in the movie changes all of that, yet for better or worse, it engages the audience deeper into the trial as they surely will sympathize with him and can gain some insight into why, later, Juror 8 does so as well. Of final note in this summary of points concerning the differences in setting, the jurors all mention the heat wave affecting the city when they begin, and as it agitates them, it serves to heighten the tension between each other and their resentment or other feelings towards jury duty. Oh- also lastly, I think we can infer that the movie takes place in Manhattan, New York City.
Juror #3 is very biased against the 19-year-old boy that is being tried, and this affects all of his thoughts and actions regarding the case. He has this bias because his own son hit him in the jaw and ran away from home at the age of 15: “I’ve got a kid…when he was fifteen he hit me in the face…I haven’t seen him in three years. Rotten kid! I hate tough kids! You work your heart out [but it’s no use] (21).”According to this quote from the text, this juror condemns all teenagers and feels resentment towards them. He especially feels strongly about the boy being tried, because the boy grew up in the slums, and this juror is also biased against these people who grew up there. It is because of these feelings that he is strongly cemented in his vote of guilty.
U.S. Military Commanders promised an overwhelming response. On the morning of Sunday, the 4th of April, 2004, platoons of Marines began to position themselves around the city. The following day the fighting began and quickly intensified. This day was the start of what is known as Operation Vigilant Resolve. It was an operation set to take back control of Fallujah from the insurgents (McCarthy, 2004).
The first vote ended with eleven men voting guilty and one man not guilty. We soon learn that several of the men voted guilty since the boy had a rough background not because of the facts they were presented with. Although numerous jurors did make racist or prejudice comments, juror ten and juror three seemed to be especially judgmental of certain types of people. Juror three happened to be intolerant of young men and stereotyped them due to an incident that happened to his son. In addition, the third juror began to become somewhat emotional talking about his son, showing his past experience may cloud his judgment. Juror ten who considered all people from the slums “those people” was clearly prejudiced against people from a different social background. Also, Juror ten stated in the beginning of the play “You 're not going to tell us that we 're supposed to believe that kid, knowing what he is. Listen, I 've lived among 'em all my life. You can 't believe a word they say. I mean, they 're born liars.” Juror ten did not respect people from the slums and believed them to all act the same. As a result, Juror ten believed that listening to the facts of the case were pointless. For this reason, the tenth juror already knew how “those people” acted and knew for sure the boy was not innocent. Even juror four mentioned just how the slums are a “breeding ground
Many critics of The Catcher in the Rye discuss in depth the characterization of the protagonist Holden Caulfield. For example, Reiff believes that Holden is a “symbol of a spontaneous, idealistic, innately good child,” despite what some believe. Reiff finds that he is also an unselfish and caring person due to Holden’s constant generosity and worrying for others (69-70). Some believe, however, that Holden is a hypocrite or a phony because of all the lies he tells. Pinsker disagrees and defends Holden saying that he lies to keep others from being hurt (Reiff 61-62). Bloom agrees with Reiff about Holden being a kind hearted person with a soft spot for children, even calling him a “secular saint.” Holden’s vision of being a catcher in the rye and desire to save children from the troubles of the world show his altruistic intentions (2). Pinsker agrees with both Bloom and Reiff but also argues that Holden worries about himself as much as the othe...
Yet with the help of one aged yet wise and optimistic man he speaks his opinion, one that starts to not change however open the minds of the other eleven men on the jury. By doing this the man puts out a visual picture by verbally expressing the facts discussed during the trial, he uses props from the room and other items the he himself brought with him during the course of the trial. Once expressed the gentleman essentially demonstrate that perhaps this young man on trial May or may not be guilty. Which goes to show the lack of research, and misused information that was used in the benefit of the prosecution. For example when a certain factor was brought upon the trail; that being timing, whether or not it took the neighbor 15 seconds to run from his chair all the way to the door. By proving this right or wrong this man Juror #4 put on a demonstration, but first he made sure his notes were correct with the other 11 jurors. After it was
What if you were afraid of leaving your home? How difficult would it be to function when contemplating a trip to the grocery store creates debilitating anxiety? That is the reality for people with agoraphobia.
Nathaniel Hawthorne opens his most famous novel, The Scarlet Letter, in the midst of the action. The novel begins with a crowd of Puritan Bostonians waiting anxiously outside the town jailhouse, hoping to see convicts, sinners, and their overall hated fellow citizens be publicly punished and shamed. This is a classic example in medias res, which translates from Latin to mean “in the middle of things,” according to Encyclopedia Britannica. The concept of introducing a plot while it is occurring and letting the reader infer about the past through context clues and flashbacks developed during the popular phase of epic poetry in ninth century B.C. as seen in Homer’s Odyssey, according to Murray. In medias res is a technique that helps create a more dramatic atmosphere and helps the author captivate the reader from the beginning. Hawthorne indirectly introduces the protagonist, Hester Prynne, in the second chapter when the crowd discusses and criticizes the punishment she has received for adultery. At this point, the reader can construe that Hester Prynne is a woman who fell to the temptation of sin, and in the Puritan society, she will have to face punishment. The reader eventually finds out greater detail of what leads her to be in the situation aforesaid. However, the few pieces of background information do not explain her past in full. This is where the reader’s imagination and logic must participate to describe in greater detail how her life has taken this certain path.
As once Martin Luther King Jr. said “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” Humans are imperfect and contain fatal flaws such as lacking fairness in vast situations. In today’s modern time, many obstacles lack righteousness such as the court system. In Twelve Angry Men, Reginald Rose conveys the theme injustice through his characterization of contrasting juror 3 and juror 8 using character foil and the extensive archetypal use of light vs darkness.
... believed in the innocence of the young man and convinced the others to view the evidence and examine the true events that occurred. He struggled with the other jurors because he became the deviant one in the group, not willing to follow along with the rest. His reasoning and his need to examine things prevailed because one by one, the jurors started to see his perspective and they voted not guilty. Some jurors were not convinced, no matter how much evidence was there, especially Juror #3. His issues with his son affected his decision-making but in the end, he only examined the evidence and concluded that the young man was not guilty.
The themes, social inequality, and social responsibility are all present throughout the movie. The jurors can be seen as symbols for certain parts of society. Juror number eight is the most open-minded of the group. It is his vote, and his dissenting voice, which brought knowledge to the jury from delaying the jury to claim the boy was guilty. Juror number ten, on the other hand, symbolizes racism present in the mid-century American society. He assumes the defendant is guilty simply because he is from a horrible place in the town, and wants to see him in jail. The theme of justice is present throughout the play, as Juror number eight spoke to his other jurors to look at the facts rather than rely on their own emotional thoughts. Ideal justice was therefore shown to be both logical and also fair. The theme of class is also shown, even though there was a growing in the middle class around the 1950 's when the play was written and first came out, class struggles were still present in society, and the play was describe to be that a person should be judged based on the facts of the case, not bias thoughts and personal emotions. Also i realized that at the end of the film when the jurors leave the room, they are carrying their jackets out with them instead of actually wearing them. They are basically saying that they are leaving their prejudices
These two jurors are almost the plain opposite of each other. Juror 3 appears to be a very intolerant man accustomed of forcing his wishes and views upon others. On the other hand, Juror 8 is an honest man who keeps an open mind for both evidence and reasonable doubt. Since these two people are indeed very different, they both have singular thoughts relating to the murder case. Juror 8 is a man who is loyal to justice. In the beginning of the play, he was the only one to vote ‘not guilty’ the first time the twelve men called a vote. Although his personality is reflected on being a quiet, thoughtful, gentle man, he is still a very persistent person who will fight for justice to be done. Juror 8 is a convincing man who presents his arguments well, but can also be seen as manipulative. An example would be when he kept provoking Juror 3 until he finally said “I’m going to kill you" to Juror 8. He did this because he wanted to prove that saying "I’ll kill you" doesn’t necessarily mean that Juror 3 was actually going to kill him. Juror 3 is a totally different character. He is a stubborn man who can be detected with a streak of sad...
Lenox, Naomi. (1999). When Fertility Therapy Runs Amok: Debating the ethics and dangers of multiple births. Midwest Today. Retrieved November 1, 2004, from the World Wide Web: http://www.midtod.com/fertility.phtml
In article “Charting the Constellation: Past and Present in Things Fall Apart”, author Sofia Samatar asserts: “This fraying or ‘falling apart’ is preceded by a vivid re-imagining of pre-colonial Igbo society as a logical whole, a structure operating according to its own interior laws.” (3) The Igbo society operates based on its own rules and cultures that are indifferent and solitary. They worship different gods and believe that different god controls different parts of human’s routine life. They celebrate different holiday- Week of Peace which “No work was done during the Week of Peace. People called on their neighbors and drank wine.” (Achebe...
The business of human fertilization in the United States began in 1981 with only a handful of clinics. In less than 15 years, over 300 fertility clinics were operating, generating $2 billion in revenues. As the incidence of infertility increased, so did the demand for the treatment available through ART. Sociological and epidemiological factors play a role in the increase of infertility. Women in developed countries are choosing to postpone childbearing for education and career, which also contributes to infertility issues. Couples who choose to seek treatm...