Who was the defendant in the Scopes Trial, known for teaching about evolution?

The defendant in the Scopes Trial was John Scopes, a high school teacher in Tennessee who was charged with violating the Butler Act. This law prohibited the teaching of human evolution in state-funded schools. The trial, which took place in 1925, became a significant legal battle between modernist and traditionalist views regarding science and religion in education.

Scopes, who had agreed to be tried to challenge the law, represented the side of those who believed in teaching evolution as part of the science curriculum. The trial drew national attention and featured notable figures such as Clarence Darrow, who defended Scopes, and William Jennings Bryan, who prosecuted the case. This high-profile debate ultimately highlighted the cultural conflict between science and religion that was prevalent during that era. The outcome of the trial, which concluded with a guilty verdict against Scopes, underscored the tension between progressive and conservative ideals in the early 20th century United States.