12 Angry Men Essay

Submitted By localboy777
Words: 588
Pages: 3
Open Document
12 Angry Men

The movie “12 Angry Men” is an excellent story about the interactions of 12 male jurors deliberating the fate of an accused murderer. The film opens right after the trial ends and the jury is about to begin deliberating, so the facts of the case and relevant testimony is only revealed through the discussions of the jurors. While this movie has merit on many different levels, for the purposes of this paper it will be used to illustrate examples of various influence techniques.

When the jurors first begin deliberations, they take a preliminary vote to see where they stand and 11 vote guilty and only one votes not guilty. This vote was just a “show of hands” vote, which creates an awkward situation for the lone juror voting “not guilty”. This lone juror (#8) is immediately met with pressure from some of the other jurors, especially Juror’s #3 and #10. These two jurors use threats and try to intimidate Juror #8 by making condescending remarks and general comments like ‘he’s obviously guilty’ and ‘only an idiot’ would think otherwise. They use these pressure techniques to try to get him to change his vote so they can conclude their jury service and ‘put away a murderer’.

Juror #8 responds by using a variety of influence techniques to at least get the other jurors to discuss the case some before reaching a verdict. First, he uses inspiration and consultation, by appealing to higher ideals and values and involving others. The ideals he appeals to are that everyone deserves to be ‘assumed innocent’ and must be ‘proved guilty beyond a reasonable doubt’. By asking other jurors questions and involving other jurors in discussion before reaching a decision, he uses the technique of consultation to influence them.

After spurring some discussion and still meeting strong resistance from the majority of jurors, Juror #8 uses the influence technique of exchange when he asks for a private vote and agrees that if the vote is still 11 to 1 for guilty, he would go along with the majority. He basically is offering to trade his vote in the hope that at least one juror will be willing to vote not guilty and allow further discussion and deliberation.

Initially, most of the jurors simply accept the credibility and accuracy of all the evidence and testimony presented by the prosecution and dismiss all of the
Show More

Related Documents: 12 Angry Men Essay

12 Angry Men

The classic 1957 film, 12 Angry Men directed by Sidney Lumet examines the validity of the jury system while 12 men, brought together by chance, determine if the defendant is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. The film depicts the importance and eminent effect of perception on our attitudes and behavior. It demonstrates the possibility of a near guilty verdict in one moment with a vote of 11 to 1, and in the next, transforming into a majority not-guilty verdict. With the life of a young 18 year old…

Words 943 - Pages 4

Democracy In 12 Angry Men

Throughout the years, many people have had numerous perspectives on democracy. A few individuals may feel it is reasonable and fair, while others feel it isn’t equivalent and unfair. In “12 Angry Men” by Reginald Rose, “Democracy” by Langston Hughes, and “Telling Americans To Vote, Or Else” by William Galston, all authors convey their perspective on democracy. Although these authors perspectives on democracy contrast from one another. They all similarly recognize that there are flaws within a democratic…

Words 1240 - Pages 5

Jurors In 12 Angry Men

In 12 Angry Men, a young adult of eighteen years old was accused of killing his own father. Twelve jurors had to decide whether the young adult was innocent or guilty. The punishment was going to be the death penalty if he were guilty. It took three hours for the twelve jurors to come to the conclusion. At first, it was eleven to one, who thought that the boy was at fault, but at the end, the twelve men concluded that the young boy was innocent. They came to this conclusion by going over facts really…

Words 1655 - Pages 7

Justice In 12 Angry Men

Twelve Angry Men, Murder On The Orient Express and Ox-Bow Incident. Together these stories present the universal truth which is justice is a product of law. A civilization without law is merely a state of nature. Robb White’s Deathwatch takes place in the desert mountains of California during the early 1970’s. Ben, a college student, guides Madec, a businessman, into the desert to hunt for bighorn, where Madec ends up shooting something else. That something else…

Words 689 - Pages 3

12 Angry Men Essay

Carolyn Zhao Business Law Period 8 12 Angry Men Essay 12 Angry Men is a play set in New York City in 1957. It takes place in a court of law jury room and begins with the Judge instructing the jurors that if the murder case is proven guilty, the defendant will be sentenced with the death penalty. The case involves the son being accused of murdering his father. As a result, the twelve jurors begin voting on if the defendant is guilty or not. All of the jurors vote guilty except for Juror #8. Due…

Words 470 - Pages 2

12 Angry Men Essay

Nathan Vasquez 10/15/12 12 Angry Men The 12 angry men are a group of jurors. That are deciding whether a 18 year old boy is guilty for killing his father or not. In the beginning when the jurors are in the room they take a vote whether the boy is guilty or not and 11 of the jurors vote that he is guilty and 12 of them so not. And when they all ask why he votes guilty he says that boy deserves a discussion over his life. In the end they all make a dission that the boy…

Words 317 - Pages 2

12 angry men Essay

Brandon Davis Mr Deering Law 120 May 29th 2014 12 Angry Men 12 Angry Men was a movie remade in 1997 based on an old play. It starts out in a courtroom where a young man is being convicted after supposedly murdering his father. The jury takes a break and goes into a private room to discuss whether they think that this man is guilty or not. They are all under impression that they all think the young man is guilty. As soon as they get into the jury room, one of the jurors immediately asks…

Words 368 - Pages 2

Groupthink In 12 Angry Men

When juror number eight stands up to the other jurors and votes not guilty, the other men get upset with him. Additionally, these men try and pressure him into changing his vote, by trying to make him feel foolish for suggesting such an idea. This leads juror number eight to call for a recount, one in which he will abstain from. If it wasn’t for juror number nine changing his vote to not guilty, the group for the second time would have succumbed to the groupthink process. Juror number eight and nine’s…

Words 177 - Pages 1

Rationalism In 12 Angry Men

The 12 Angry Men was an interesting movie to watch. There are several Philosophical positions it has. I believe three of the theories of Rationalism, Reasoning, Empiricism and Duty and Justice is a good Philosophical position for this film. Human being needs all of them to accomplish what they are after. Archiving the knowledge with reason and requiring the knowledge through experience along the lines. Adding the sense of justice and duty depending on their moral ideas. Thought-out the movie, they…

Words 377 - Pages 2

12 Angry Men Essay

Group Dynamics and Group Stages Rebecca A. Thrush Group Counseling Theories and Techniques Lamar University Group Dynamics and Group Stages The 1957 film, 12 Angry Men, illustrates the process of group communication. After viewing this film, I decided to analyze these dynamics with the stages provided by Tuckman and Jenson (1977). This film clarifies the positives, as well as the negatives, of the stages of team growth and group development. The stages of forming, storming, norming…

Words 1761 - Pages 8