How Does Henry Drummond Inherit The Wind

Many people like to believe they know what is right from what is wrong, but when it comes to the court system and the search for justice, Henry Drummond will fight for the cases that no other lawyer has the audacity to take on. Drummond exhibits an undying perseverance to fight for Bertram Cates in the Scopes Trial depicted in Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee’s play, Inherit the Wind. Through Henry Drummond’s tactfulness, open-mindedness, and determination, he is able to make a biased town see the absurdity of a law that takes away a person's right to freedom of thought.

Henry Drummond’s tactfulness allows him to convince a partisan jury of the absurdity of putting a man on trial for simply expressing an unpopular viewpoint. Drummond shows

Drummond, unlike everyone else in the town does not see everything as black and white allowing him to understand cases such as Bert Cates’, where the defendant is against the entire town and is convicted before the trial even begins. Drummond demonstrates his open-mindedness and ability to defend Cates’ right to think when he blatantly mocks Brady in trial declaring, “Then why did God plague us with the capacity to think? Mr. Brady, why do you deny the one faculty of man that raises him above the other creatures of the earth? The power of his brain to reason” (Lawrence and Lee 93). Drummond’s main defense is that Bert Cates was merely exercising his right to human thought and opinion in his classroom, even though he was knowingly breaking a law. Drummond tells Cates, “You don’t suppose this kind of thing is ever finished, do you? Tomorrow it’ll be something else-and another fella will have to stand up. And you’ve helped give him the guts to do it!” (Lawrence and Lee 123). Drummond understands that just because Cates broke the law first, he is not the last because it is an unjust law that attempts to remove a person’s ability to exercise freedom of thought. Drummond, unlike many people at the time, possesses the ability to put himself in another man’s shoes and understand their perspective when everyone else

Drummond is adamantly fighting for the truth throughout the trial and will not stop until he has revealed it to the people. He illustrates his persistent search for the truth and justice when he says, “You know that’s not true. I’m trying to stop you bigots and ignoramuses from controlling the education of the United States! And you know it!” (Lawrence and Lee 98). Drummond’s dedication to proving to the jury and the world of Cates’ innocence shows how he will stop at nothing to gain justice and reveal the truth behind a case where a man is convicted for the crime of free thought. Drummond is not only determined to prove to the jury of Cates’ innocence, but he also wants Cates to realize it himself. He is resolute on showing Cates that fighting for the truth and what he believes in is more important than conforming to society when he states, “But all you have to do is knock on any door and say, “Cates, I’ll change your plea and we’ll call off the whole business-on one condition. If you honestly believe you committed a criminal act against the citizens of this state and the minds of their children. If you honestly believe you’re wrong and the law’s right. The hell with it” (Lawrence and Lee 52). Drummond will do whatever it takes to help Cates in trial, but only if he is ready to stand up for what he