Jeffrey Moran. The Scopes Trial: A Brief History With Documents. Bedford Books, 2021.
The Scopes trial shocked America. Tennessee school teacher John Scopes brought the question of teaching evolution in schools to every dinner table, and it remains an essential topic in any course on American History, the History of Education, and Religious History. The second edition features a lively interpretative introduction that provides an accessible analysis of the trial and its impact on the moral fiber of the country and the educational system, and examines the race and gender issues that shook out of the debate. The new edition includes scholarship updates throughout as well as a new section analyzing the relationship between teaching evolution, creationism, and intelligent design in the decades following the trial. The author has excerpted the crucial exchanges from the trial transcript itself, and includes these along with reactions to the trial, taken from newspaper reports, letters, and magazine articles. Telling political cartoons and evocative photographs add a colorful dimension to this collection. New images include a cartoon of Clarence Darrow and a photograph of evangelical preachers touring Dayton while new text documents on the New Woman and religious alternatives in the 1920s offer exciting opportunities for students seeking to understand the culture of the Jazz Age. Updated pedagogical support in the new edition includes expanded headnotes, revised questions for consideration, and an updated bibliography. Available in print and e-book formats.