Twelve Angry Men Plot

Plot: "Twelve Angry Men" is an interesting and exciting jury-room confrontation in which an "open and shut case" becomes strenuous as twelve strangers scuffle for answers. The trial involves a nineteen-year-old boy, who is suspect of killing his father in a late-night altercation with an extraordinary knife. His fate now lies in the hands of 12 jurors, each with his own determination to solve the case and reveal the truth. As the session takes its course, evidence becomes scrutinised, tempers rise, and the jury room erupts in a shouting brawl because one such juror finds reasonable doubts in the two testimonies that were deemed credible enough to convict. In his fight for an acquittal, the singled out juror found that the testimonial evidence was not only unreliable, but the timely fashion in which both the man and the woman alleged to have seen and heard the defendant were by far insufficient. Upon reaction to his vote, the dubious jurors immediately began questioning the man, not understanding how he could possibly think that way. Nevertheless, the adamant juror held his ground and the votes were: 11 guilty, and 1 not guilty, but the decision had to be unanimous.

Character: First there were those that couldn't care less about the outcome, then there was Davis, the tenacious juror who held a firm grip onto the possibility of reasonable doubt in the case. He demonstrated his personal strength of mind and tried eliminating any individual prejudices for the best possible deliberation. In his fight for the truth, he spoke compassionately toward his fellow jurors, having them ask themselves "Could this have possibly happened?" He noticed that the other eleven jurors based their judgement solely on hard evidence, while paying little attention to the consistency and trustworthiness of the testimonies. During his re-examination, he provided for the basis of his decision on which he found reasonable doubt in the testimonies. As a result, he proved the timing to be underestimated by several seconds. Nonetheless, he maintained a subtle poise and composure during the cession, and with such confidence, he asked for a revote. The outcome was successfully manipulated, with the votes now standing at 11 not guilty and 1 guilty.

Methods of Persuasion: The methods of persuasion used in the jury session consisted of Davis's ability to open the others' eyes to the inconsistencies of the re-examination of the testimonies. It was a real fight to the end, because Davis could have easily given up. He begins by saying that he "only wants to talk." He sheds some light on the other jurors when he undermines the testimony of a woman who claimed to have seen the boy. Davis asserts that she could not have seen him at all because time was too short. With the time given, she had to wake up, and put her glasses. They all soon found out that there was not enough time to do so. A neighbor also claimed to have been under the house of the father who and said he heard the murder. Shortly thereafter, the man said he ran outside and saw the boy in a matter of 15 seconds. After running this route again, they came to the conclusion that this was not possible in 15 seconds! The discussions became personal, with each juror revealing his own character, as the various testimonies were re-examined. Then the knife of the murder came up. Davis proved that there were a lot of people who own such a knife by showing the jurors one exactly like it. In the end, all the jurors finally voted not guilty as a result of Davis's methods of persuasion.