Besides its legal issue, the Scopes Trial was primarily a clash of personalities. Since there were other factors that affected the case, the trial was influenced by the high-level personnel involved. America's top criminal lawyer, Clarence Darrow, defended Scopes while the charismatic and famous William J. Bryan led the prosecution. Both came with their own teams of lawyers who were their own characters. But what was really visible throughout the trial was the animosity and hostility between the defendants and the prosecutors; centralized by the feud between Bryan and Darrow. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Clarence Darrow and William J. Bryan had some sort of tension between them from the start. They both had different ideologies and were not on the same page when it came to the struggle between the theory of evolution and religion. Darrow defended Scopes and taught the theory of evolution, while Bryan was strictly opposed to it. Not only that, but the fact that Darrow and Bryan volunteered to participate in the trial made things more personal. It made it seem like their reputations were on the line. Because of all these factors, Bryan and Darrow were always on edge at the end of the day. Throughout the trial, Darrow and Bryan always had an antagonistic relationship. But that animosity really showed when Bryan was called into the stands by Darrow on the seventh day of the trial. The seventh day of the trial was essentially an argument between Darrow and Bryan, which shows the influence these two characters had on this case. An entire day was devoted to this meeting between Darrow and Bryan. Throughout that day, the two men continually clashed. Darrow questioned Bryan and asked if he was sure of what he was saying. Tension increased as there was ego conflict and Darrow asked Bryan to answer his question, to which Bryan responded, "When you let me finish the statement." (147). Moving forward, the shock of these personalities grew as Bryan ridiculed Darrow and his understanding of religion. Darrow asked Bryan if he believed that whoever inspired the Bible thought that the sun revolved around the earth, to which Bryan replied, "I believe that was inspired by the Almighty, and he perhaps used language that could be understood at that time, instead of using language that could not be understood before Darrow was born. (147). There was laughter and applause in the yard because of Bryan's little jab at Darrow. Over time, a question mark emerged over the fairness of Darrow's interrogation. Tempers flared as the fighting continued and things got personal. Rather than focusing on Scopes and the ongoing trial, Darrow intended to have Bryan say that the Bible can be interpreted. Bryan figuratively attacked Darrow by saying that the people who applauded him were "the people you insult" (150). To which Darrow reacted angrily and declared: "You insult all the men of science and learning in the world because they do not believe in your stupid religion" (150). As personal as this may seem, it shows how the conflict between Darrow and Bryan could have taken precedence over the trial at the moment. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a personalized article from our expert writers now. Get a personalized essay here.