Although the fundamentalist orator William Jennings Bryan won the case for the state of Tennessee, the immense publicity of the trial swung much national opinion toward Clarence Darrow in defense of modernism.
While legislation prohibiting the teaching of evolutionary science in public schools faded, the conflict between religious fundamentalism and science continues to this day.
William Jennings Bryan and Clarence Darrow. Smithsonian Institution; Flickr Commons.
Interesting that they named it “Monkey Trial”. Was that because of or evolutionary connection with apes?
I think the term “monkey trial” was used in a derogatory manner by the religious fundamentalists & perhaps humorously by others.
As if to say: “You mean we all came from monkeys?!”
Actually, scientific theory suggests that we and the monkeys evolved from a common ancestor.