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Rose was a slice of life writer his

style was in the realist and naturalist


theatrical tradition

Reginald Rose

12 ANGRY MEN A TWO ACT DRAMA


WRITTEN AS A TELEPLAY FOR CBS IN 1953
Background
The 1950s were
considered to be the
golden age of
television - thousands
of live dramas were
broadcast.
At this time television
replaced film and radio
as the most popular
entertainment.
Background - Early 1950s
The 1950s were a time of increasing demands
for Civil Rights for black Americans (achieved
legally 1964).

The Cold War had begun between democratic


USA and communist USSR, former allies in
WWII. Both powers wanted political and
economic dominance.

After WWII devastation in Europe the US was


flooded by refugees not all welcomed Are you now or have you ever
because of their different cultures.
been a Communist? McCarthy

McCarthy accused people, many from the


entertainment industry, of being a communist
with little or no evidence in his witch hunts.
Jobs, reputations and lives were lost.

Fear of reds under beds


In a way, almost everything I
wrote in the fifties was about
McCarthyism. Rose 1995

"
Victims of McCarthy at the
HUAC hearings (House of
Un-American Activities
Committee)
The Rosenbergs sentence caused great upset and unease

Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were


convicted of selling U.S. atomic
secrets to the Soviet Union.

They are sent to the electric chair in


1953 despite outrage from many
liberals who consider them victims of
an anti-communist witch hunt.

It is thought that the jury spent hours


attempting to convince a single juror
of Ethels guilt. Was she guilty beyond
reasonable doubt?

There was little evidence against her,


but she was also found guilty with her
husband. Their two young boys
became orphans.
The Death Sentence
The UN proclaimed the
Universal Declaration of Human
Rights in 1948 human rights
should be protected by the rule
of law.
After the Rosenberg case many
questions were raised about the
death penalty. Supporters of it
decreased significantly.
It was not until 2005 that it was
decreed unlawful to execute
offenders under 18 years old.
The Legal System
Rose keeps legal jargon
to a minimum.
The play hinges on
reasonable doubt to
put someone to death
should not be based on
maybe or probably.
Why do you think Rose
uses numbers for the
jury, rather than
names?
No one anywhere ever knows what goes on inside a
jury room but the jurors, and I thought ..that a play
taking place entirely within a jury room might be an
exciting and possible moving experience for an
audience. (Rose)

The play exposes the


goings on of a jury room.
It is a character study
reflecting personal
experience, bias and
prejudice.
It demonstrates different
sectors (classes) of society.
The following pictures are from the 1957 film. They go clockwise.
They may help with you learn the character profiles.

www.aveleyman.com/FilmCredit.aspx?FilmID=20145
Jurors 1 to 4
Jurors 5 to 8

No. 8 Peter Fonda


Jurors 9 to 12
Find quotes from the book for these opposing forces: :
Prosecution Defence
Ignorance Open-mindedness
Good Evil
Risk taking Safety
Wisdom Bigotry
antagonism reconciliation

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