Inherit the Wind

by Jerome Lawrence, Robert E. Lee

Inherit the Wind: Themes


Individual vs. Machine
Jerome Lawrence said in an interview with Nina Couch that "almost if not all of our plays share the theme of the dignity of every individual mind." The machine in this case is a combination of government and traditional thought, which are allied in Inherit the Wind to serve as adversaries against the right to think freely and exchange—or teach—those thoughts. In the exchange with Brady on the witness stand, Drummond asks the witness if he believes a sponge thinks and if a man has the same privileges that a sponge does. When Brady responds in...

(The entire page is 780 words.)

Want to read the whole thing?

Subscribe now to read the rest of this article. Plus, get access to:

  • 30,000+ literature study guides
  • Critical essays on more than 30,000 works of literature from Salem on Literature (exclusive to eNotes)
  • An unparalleled literary criticism section. 40,000 full-length or excerpted essays.
  • Content from leading academic publishers, all easily citable with our "Cite this page" button.
  • 100% satisfaction guarantee READ MORE