HST2009: The Scopes 'Monkey Trial'
20 credits (semester 1)
Module Leader:
| Pre-requisites |
Pass in at least two of the Level One modules offered by the Department of History.
| Module Summary |
In July 1925 a Tennessee High School teacher named John Scopes was put on trial for violating a recently introduced state law which prohibited teaching the theory of evolution. The charge was relatively minor but it nevertheless resulted in what became known as 'the trial of century'. For several weeks through that long, hot summer it seemed that the whole nation's eyes were on the sensational events unfolding in the small town of Dayton, Tennessee, where the trial was held.
This module examines those events—making use of newspapers, cartoons and film as well as the transcript of the trial itself—to illuminate the contentious and divided character of American culture during the Jazz Age. Exploring historical questions that continue to resonate today—the place of religion in public life; the relationships between science, modernity, and belief—this module seeks both to improve students' source criticism skills and to deepen their understanding of a pivotal decade in modern US history.
| Module Aims |
This module aims to:
- Provide students with an in-depth understanding of the relationships between science, religion and modernity in the United States in the 1920s.
- Introduce students to a range of source criticism skills, including those relating to visual sources and to film.
- Introduce students to a variety of historiographical approaches to the study of science and religion, and to ideas about progress in ‘modern’ societies.
- Promote students' ability to write informed and cogent essays in clear, structured and grammatical prose.
- Promote collaborative learning among students and develop group-work skills.
- Provide an opportunity for students to develop their confidence and competence in oral presentation.
| Teaching |
The module is taught through a series of weekly seminars and workshops. The seminars focus on broad themes in order to help students to develop their understanding of historical contexts and historiographical controversies. They will also provide opportunities for students to present their ideas and interpretations to the wider group. The workshops will be based on systematic study of primary sources prepared in advance and will involve student-led discussions and presentations in order to enhance team-working, presentational and interpretative skills, while also involving students in intensive engagement with practices of source criticism.
| Seminars | Workshops | |
| 1 | Cultures of the Jazz Age | Approaches to the twenties |
| 2 | Reaction and reform | The life of (William Jennings) Bryan |
| 3 | The Antievolution movement | Day 1 – Opening arguments |
| 4 | Majorities and freedoms | Days 2-4: Political & religious authority |
| 5 | Religion | Days 5-7: A duel to the death |
| 6 | Science and secularism | Cartoons and illustrations |
| 7 | Race and region | If Monkeys could speak´ |
| 8 | Gender | Flappers, mothers & others |
| 9 | Celebrity & spectacle | Newspapers and reporting |
| 10 | Inherit the Wind | Moving images: Scopes on film |
| 11 | Antievolution after Scopes | Revision workshop |
| Selected Reading |
- Jeffrey P. Moran (ed.), The Scopes Trial: A Brief History with Documents (Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2002) [recommended purchase]
- Edward Larsen, Summer for the Gods: The Scopes Trial and America's Continuing Debate over Science and Religion (New York: Basic Books, 1997) [recommended purchase]
- Joel Carpenter, Revive Us Again: The Reawakening of American Fundamentalism (New York: OUP, 1997)
- Daniel Kevles, In the Name of Eugenics: Genetics and the Uses of Human Heredity (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1995)
- Nancy MacLean, Behind the Mask of Chivalry: The Making of the Second Ku Klux Klan (New York: OUP, 1994)
- Richard Hofstadter, The Age of Reform: From Bryan to F.D.R. (New York: A. A. Knopf, 1955)
| Intended Learning Outcomes |
By the end of the module, a candidate will be able to demonstrate:
- An advanced knowledge and understanding of the cultural conflicts of the 1920s, particularly those concerning the relationship between science, religion, and modernity.
- The ability to recognise, evaluate, and analyse a wide range of primary source materials (including visual sources and film) and to apply these skills and knowledge in writing commentaries on sources.
- The ability to use a critical knowledge of primary sources to engage with current historiography and to formulate independent conclusions, both orally and in well-written, grammatical prose.
- A broader experience of team-work
- Ability and experience in presenting material orally in seminars, exchanging views with the tutor and with other students.