How we cite our quotes: (Act, Scene, Line)
Quote #1
BRADY (Reaching for a sympathetic ear, trying to find the loyal audience which has slipped away from him) My friends—Your Honor—My Followers—Ladies and Gentlemen— (II, II, 768-70)
This line is important because it's the first sign that Brady, even if he wins the case, has lost his audience. And since we know that attention is his real goal—not defending the law against evolution—we know that this line means a true defeat for poor old Brady.
Quote #2
BRADY. (Still erect on the witness stand) Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi…
(His voice trails off. He sinks, limp and exhausted into the witness chair.) (II, II, 803-06)
Taking the stand might have been a bad idea for Brady; it leaves him flapping on the shore like a fish out-of-water. He's no longer a big, strong bear, is he? The tides sure have turned.
Quote #3
MRS. BRADY (Taking his hand) Matt—
(BRADY looks about to see if everyone has left the courtroom, before he speaks.)
BRADY. Mother. They're laughing at me, Mother!
MRS. BRADY. (Unconvincingly) No, Matt. No, they're not!
Mrs. Brady is usually the wind beneath her Mister's wings, but even she can't convince him that people aren't laughing at him in this sad scene. Probably because, well, they are laughing at him. Yikes. We're a little disturbed by Mr. and Mrs. Brady's relationship dynamics in this play. They don't seem quite healthy. Someone call Freud …
Quote #4
MRS. BRADY. (Soothing) It's all right, baby. It's all right. (MRS. BRADY sways gently back and forth, as if rocking her husband to sleep) Baby…Baby…! (II, II, 820-23)
From giant to baby in one fell swoop; this visual image is the picture of defeat. This is another moment where the special circumstances of the theatre are used to show rather than tell what is happening in the play. Mr. Brady sure has fallen far from his original larger-than-life stardom.
Quote #5
The courtroom is almost empty. Two spectators doze in their chairs. In comparative shadow, BRADY sits, eating a box lunch. He is drowning his troubles with food, as an alcoholic escapes from reality with a straight shot. (III, 6-9)
Why do you think that Brady has given up here? It's too early for him to know that he's lost the bigger battle, isn't it?
Quote #6
JUDGE. The jury's decision is unanimous. Bertram Cates is found guilty as charged!
(There is tremendous reaction in the courtroom. Some cheers, applause, "Amens." Some boos. BRADY is pleased. But it is not the beaming, powerful, assured BRADY of the Chautauqua tent. It is a spiteful, bitter victory for him, not a conquest with a cavalcade of angels.) (III, 218-25)
This ruling should be a defeat for Bert and Drummond. But Brady is the one that seems really disappointed here. The change in his demeanor is what gives away the fact that his goal has not been accomplished; he wanted to crucify Bert. Instead, all Bert has gotten is a slap on the wrist. And Mr. Brady has already been humiliated in front his once-adoring public. Poor Mr. Brady. We guess.
Quote #7
(BRADY is fretful and disturbed. He's won the case. The prize is his, but he can't reach for the candy. In his hour of triumph, BRADY expected to be swept from the courtroom on the shoulders of his exultant followers. But the drama isn't proceeding according to plan.) (III, 270-75)
This line shows us that defeat isn't only about what happens in public; you can win the case, but if you had higher expectations for yourself, you can still feel like you lost. It's our own internal compasses that determine our understandings of certain events as wins or losses. Are we right?
Quote #8
JUDGE. […] The court deems it proper—(He glances at the MAYOR)—to sentence Bertram Cates to pay a fine of—(He coughs) one hundred dollars. (III, 83-86)
This is a very sweet defeat for Drummond. Even though he lost the case, Bert's sentence is so light that we know things will go his way eventually… whether he finds justice through court appeals, or the court of popular opinion.
Quote #9
(The mighty Evolution Law explodes with the pale puff of a wet firecracker. There is a murmur of surprise through the courtroom. BRADY is indignant.)
What an image. The "pale puff of a wet firecracker," huh? Does that sound like a big victory to you? Nope.
Quote #10
DRUMMOND. […] I wonder how it feels to be Almost-President three times—with a skull full of undelivered inauguration speeches.
HORNBECK. Something happens to an Also-Ran.
Something happens to the feet of a man
Who always comes in second in a foot-race.
He becomes a national unloved child,
A balding orphan, an aging adolescent
Who never got the biggest piece of candy. (III, 477-86)
These lines remind us that Brady, who up to this point has been painted as a beloved, famous man, is really a lifetime loser. He's just "an aging adolescent" who crumbles when he doesn't get his way. The way that Brady reacts to Drummond's questioning during the trial pretty much convinces us that this accusation is true; Brady really is a big baby. It's pretty hard to have any respect for the guy.