The Adult Point of View of a Lower Class Teenager in the Play 12 Angry Men by Reginald Rose

12 Angry Men Essay

No matter how many changes are made overtime, people are selfish. Throughout the years, culture has changed, but values and human behavior has not. Where someone is located in the social class will, by some means, come back to them in a negative way. In Reginald Rose's play "12 Angry Men", he discusses the adult point of view of a lower class teenager, and the consequences of prejudice, impatience, and the life or death situations that the members of the jury brought into the jury room.

Prejudice is a problem everyone faces once in their lives. In "12 Angry Men", the main prejudice is derived from where the characters come from. People from the 'slums' are lower class, and have a lot of stereotypes against them. They are seen as insignificant, and worthless members of their society. In the play, when referring to someone living in the slums, the person is simply called "one of 'them"" (Rose 20). They are also thought of as dangerous, juror number four even states, "the children of slum backgrounds are potential menaces to society" (Rose 21). It was wrong of him to say such a judgmental statement, because he was inconsiderate the probability that one of the jury members could have in fact been from the slums himself. The discrimination towards these victims of injustice strongly affected the trial at hand. Today, prejudice comes from what age group is being discussed. Teenagers are often seen as lazy and self-involved, and young children are naïve. For example, if an employer is attempting to hire a teenager and he or she has a bias on the age group, possibly originated from the teenagers in the employers life such as their own children, then it might affect the employers want to hire the teenager. As the stereotypes are far harmless than the ones verbalized in the play, the idea of the presence of prejudice is still relevant today and affects the lives of children of all ages.

Patience is key, and impatience will change a person's attitude. Without patience, today's youth is unbearable. Tranquility and composure are almost needed as a second nature for parents and teachers to tolerate the behavior of young adults and children. In the play, patience was important in the jury room, because the setting hadn't been the ideal place to decide a boy's future. The room did not have air conditioning; it only had a window and a water fountain to escape the evening heat. With that being said, the jurors were easy to rile up into anger and make, in some cases, their only goal to leave the jury room as soon as possible. Their bickering and impatience to go home made them want to overlook and ignore the important details to prove the boys innocence. When stuck in a small, and stuffy room, a boy's life is not as significant for egotistical people.

Live or die, a choice that often is not in the hands of the beholder. In the play, the future of a nineteen year old boy is in the hands of twelve men. In the very beginning, the judge urges the jurors of the impact of their current duty, he states "I urge you to deliberate honestly and thoughtfully. You are faced with a grave responsibility" (Rose 21). The judge is aware of the importance of this case and that "one man is dead", and "the life of another is at stake" (Rose 21). There is also the determination of juror number eight and his knowledge of the seriousness of the case. He was not satisfied with the trial, and the juror was unable to let the boy die without looking at all the facts. An example of today's life and death situations have to do with how badly people want to stick to their opinions. While protesting, it is not rare for police to get too involved even though citizens of many countries have the right to protest. Depending on how persistent the protesters are, the police, whom are known for police brutality, will take barbarous actions. Life and death situations cannot be taken lightly, it is a person's life in peril.

To conclude, in the play "12 Angry Men, by Reginald Rose, he uses vague details and lacks using names for the purpose of making the play connectable to all readers. Topics such as prejudice, patience, and life or death situations are discussed and applicable to the modern day. Everyone has to live with these struggles, yet the ones who cause these situations are mostly too selfish to realize the impact of what they are saying or doing. Lives can be at stake, feelings will be hurt and futures will be crushed. Although written sixty years ago, Roses play will be talked about for years to come for its vast number of themes and relatable topics.

Works Cited

• Rose, Reginald. Twelve Angry Men. Two Plays for Study. Toronto: McClelland & Stewart Limited, 1967. 11-51. Print

Cite this page