First Post of the Year

I have also never really thought about the right to think because it seems like such a basic part of human nature. It did not occur to me that it could be limited to such an extent as shown in Inherit the Wind. I agree with Brady that there are many different kinds of thinking and that no one can control someone else’s mind, but even if there is no mind control, people find ways to limit each other through manipulation. Reverend Brown is a great example of this because he uses the town’s ignorance to control their beliefs. When I think about this concept, the Bill of Rights comes to mind. The right to think is not explicitly stated and it probably is not necessary, but if our right to think is being infringed upon, so is our right of free speech. In Inherit the Wind, the people of Hillsboro are such strong believers of creationism that if someone were to speak out against it, it would not only violate the Butler Act, but the respect of the community would be lost. Since the correlation between thought and spoken word is so strong, it just proves even more that the Butler Act was unconstitutional.

Reading this play has allowed me connect the right to think to our current society and how much of a role the media plays in it. We discussed the fact that North Korea is very limited in knowledge because their government restricts it. That shows that although this play was based off a court case from the 1920s, the concept is still relevant today. Even though I have enough information accessible to me to form on my own opinions, I still wonder how much of my thinking is limited. Is there anything that due to the influences of my family or school that has restricted my thoughts? I think, that the right to think will remain a concept that society struggles with for a long time.