Tom Acton
English 290
23 Jan. 2001

Early in the film we see the protagonist of sorts, played by Henry Fonda, disagreeing with eleven of the angry men in the film. He, alone, stands up for the rights of the accused, even though it means bringing down the verbal wrath of a few much louder, much angrier men. Lumet shows that Fonda's character is capable of being strong, despite the ridicule of his fellow jurors, without having to yell and scream.

As the film progresses, the soft spoken strength of the lone objector to the jury's rush to execution draws more and more to study the facts logically and come to the realization that legitimate doubt existed in the prosecutions case. One by one, the men have to change sides as they realize the truth. Each time a juror changes his mind, he is immediately attacked by a couple men that believe the defendant to be guilty, meaning each man, in turn, has to face an onslaught of verbal attacks and mockery in order to voice their opinions. Not one person can say they have gone through life and not been in a similar situation at one point in their life. It's more than probable that these situations didn't occur in a deliberation room, but still, everyone has had to face the fear that comes with standing up for what you believe in despite strong peer pressure to do otherwise.

Lumet also deals with the pain one undergoes when admitting flaw. Towards the end of the film, a couple of the men that have argued and argued for the guilt of the accused have to admit that they may be wrong, and the man may be innocent. This battle is just as difficult as the one to stand up for what you believe in. One man is brought to tears. 12 Angry Men points out that, at times, it is just as hard to say what you do know to be true as it is to admit what you do not.