Inherit the wind

            
             Although the battle between creationism and evolutionism triggered the trial in the play Inherit the Wind, as the trial goes on in the play it becomes clear that the conflict goes much further then these two concepts. Society at the time was being controlled by, religious, political and national forces. The battle between religion and evolutionism was only one of many struggles occurring. The authors of the play developed a series of opposites in the form of personalities, environments, and concepts to highlight these contrasts. Like Drummond and Brady for example, although they use to be two attorneys with a close friendship, they had now split due to their views on different philosophies. Brady had become famous not only for his skills in politics, but also for his role in the religious community. Drummond had become a criminal defense attorney and had a reputation for being disbeliever, and because of this he always found himself defending the under dog. The environment also held opposites, for there was the separation between the urban and small town life. People in the urban areas were being exposed to new technologies and ideas, and were also more diverse. In small towns fundamentalism still had control over the beliefs of the people. In the story they use the citizens of Hillsboro in conflict with Hornbeck and Henry Drummond to display this.
             I main situation that comes up in this play is a conflict between man and society. Cates challenges the law by teaching evolution in his class. People react to this with full aggression, Cates describes this when he says, "people look at me as if I were a murderer, worse than a murderer!" This shows how strongly the citizens of Hillsboro believed in their religion, and how sensitive their minds were to new ideas. At the end of the play when the verdict is announced, Drummond tells Cates that now that you have stood up to society you have helped give people the guts to stand up too.