11th Grade Humanities

Voire Dire

Historical Context

Students explore the history of the American justice system, with a specific focus on juries. Students learn about the voire dire jury selection process.

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Literary Analysis

Students take what they've learned about the justice system and use that knowledge to analyze 12 Angry Men, specifically how it navigates bias.

Character Analysis

Students select a juror to analyze in depth. They use their analysis skills to frame the juror's ideals, motivations, desires, and personality.

The Innocence Project

Through a partnership with the California Innocence Project, students use their analysis skills to dig into cases and make determinations for the CIP.

I. Why 12 Angry Men? & Historical context

Through the diverse cast of characters and their interactions, 12 Angry Men presents an opportunity for students to explore the impact of stereotypes, discrimination, and systemic racism in the pursuit of justice. By witnessing the deliberations within the jury room, students are confronted with the reality of how racial prejudices can influence decisions and perpetuate inequality. It fosters conversations about the far-reaching consequences of racial bias and the urgent need for a fair and equitable judicial system. The play serves as a catalyst for critical thinking and deep reflection, inspiring students to challenge societal norms and work towards dismantling racial injustice.

Before reading the text, students were introduced to the historical context imperative to fully understanding 12 Angry Men. This context includes a conversation about gender on juries, including when women were allowed to serve on juries in different states around the US. We also spent time discussing issues of race and non-white people being allowed to serve on juries. Some of the specifics covered included jurist and politician William Blackstone, suffrage, the Great Depression, the 14th Amendment, Jim Crow, and the 1955 voter registration surge. We also discussed the trial of Darren Wilson for the murder of Michael Brown, specifically looking at the racial makeup of the jury (9 white jurors, 3 Black jurors), which was not reflective of the population of Ferguson, MO (the population of which is 2/3 Black).

With this information in mind, we discussed the implications of the jury within the play (which is white and male). Students were asked to predict how this might affect the outcome of the trial and their final decision. Because we read the play in reader's theater format, we also discussed the fact that anyone can read for any character, despite the roles as they are written in the text.

As we read 12 Angry Men, students engaged in various levels of literary analysis, often with a specific focus on character analysis. We read the play in 3 separate sittings, each sitting covering a single act. We read the play in the form of reader's theater, so each character was read by an individual student. An additional student read stage directions. At the end of each Act, students participated in a verbal literary analysis exercise in which they analyzed the arc of the story, the dialogue, and the case within the story itself.

Character analysis came in three parts. After the first act, students engaged in verbal character analysis, and we focused specifically on Jurors 3 and 8 – arguably the protagonist and antagonist of the story. After the second act, students were given a graphic organizer which asked them to do more in-depth analysis by selecting a juror, naming three defining character traits, and citing textual evidence to back it up. As an addition, students were asked to make a prediction about that character, explaining their reasoning with textual evidence. As an extension, if students completed this quickly, they were encouraged to make a second prediction about the play at large. Students were provided with a list of character traits to help them organize their thoughts and expand their vocabulary.

After the third act, students embarked on what would become their final project for this short unit. Using the same juror they selected after the second act, students were asked to make more generalized assumptions about their character based on the text in the play. Their product would involve a glimpse into the juror in the modern day. Students were provided with ideas that they could choose from for their product, or were invited to create their own. These ideas included a character's twitter account, dating profile, text history, or other similar character insights. Upon completion, students worked through a self-assessment using a rubric.

self assessment rubric

II. literary & character analysis

Patricia Forg

English Teacher