How we cite our quotes: (Act, Scene, Line)
Quote #4
BRADY. […] I want people everywhere to know I bear no personal animosity toward Henry Drummond. There was a time when we were on the same side of the fence. He gave me active support in my campaign of 1908—and I welcomed it. (Almost impassioned, speaking at writing tempo, so all the reporters can get it down) But I say that if my own brother challenged the faith of millions, as Mr. Drummond is doing, I would oppose him still! (II, I, 25-32)
This little bit of backstory shows us how the Drummond-Brady showdown is actually sort of a rematch between these two characters. The fact that these two lawyers have a history—that they're old BFFs turned arch-nemeses—adds even more drama to the play. This is some As the World Turns -level drama, kiddos.
Quote #5
DRUMMOND. Do you ever think about things that you do think about? (There is some laughter.
But it is dampened by the knowledge and awareness throughout the courtroom, that the trap is about to be sprung) Isn't it possible that first day was twenty-five hours long? There was no way to measure it, no way to tell! Could it have been twenty-five hours?(Pause. The entire courtroom seems to lean forward.)
BRADY (Hestitates—then) It is… possible…
(DRUMMOND'S got him. And he knows it! This is the turning point. From here on, the tempo mounts. DRUMMOND is now fully in the driver's seat. He pounds his questions faster and faster.) (II, II, 671-83)
Reading this scene is like watching a boxer chase his opponent into a corner and bite his ear off. (Yikes, sorry Mike Tyson.) This moment is especially important in the play because we can pinpoint it as the climax. The stage directions tell us that this is the point of no return, when the losers become the winners. The tables have turned for Drummond and Bert, and now we know they'll come out on top (in some sense). We're on the edge of our seats for the grand finale…
Quote #6
DRUMMOND. […] Must men go to prison because they are at odds with the self-appointed prophet? (BRADY is now trembling so that it is impossible for him to speak. He rises, towering above his tormenter—rather like a clumsy, lumbering bear that is baited by an agile dog) (II, II, 757-62)
The simile comparing Brady to a clumsy bear and Drummond to an agile dog gives the reader a vivid image of the mismatch between the two lawyers; one seemed bigger and stronger, but he wasn't quick enough to get the better of the underdog. We here at Shmoop would bet on the doesn't-miss-a-thing Mr. Drummond any day.