Play by Reginald Rose Teaching Activities by Rivka Lewenstein

1. 
How has reading the above information about male and female jurors helped you 
better understand 
Twelve Angry Men
? 
2.
Do you think that the all-male cast of jurors has had an impact on the effectiveness 
of the play and on the interaction between the characters? If so, how? Would you 
have enjoyed the play more had it been about a jury consisting of both men and 
women?
SAMPLE PAGE FROM 
TWELVE ANGRY MEN
© 2011. A.E.L. Publications

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Twelve Angry Men
3.
In your opinion, should people be required to serve on juries altogether, or should 
jury duty be purely voluntary? Why?
4
Do you feel that women should be required to serve on a jury on a status equal to 
that of men? Why or why not? Are there any other groups of people whom you 
think should not be required to sit on a jury even when all others are required to 
do so?
How likely 
would a 
jury like this 
have been in 
1965? What 
about today?
SAMPLE PAGE FROM 
TWELVE ANGRY MEN
© 2011. A.E.L. Publications

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After the Play
Post-Reading Activity
Choose one of the following tasks.
1.
You are a court reporter (a journalist who writes about things that happen in 
court). You have attended the entire court case described in 
Twelve Angry Men
and have also conducted very short interviews with some of the jurors after the 
verdict was given. Write a newspaper article (approximately 150 words) about the 
verdict, including quotes from at least three jurors. 
Remember that:
• The tone of your newspaper article should be objective.
• An article presents names and dates, so you may have to make up a few details.
• You were not present in the jury room while the jurors were discussing the 
case.
• You have only conducted very short interviews with the jurors, so they were not 
able to tell you most of what went on in the jury room.
2.
You are the boy accused of killing his father. Write a series of four diary entries 
(approximately 150-200 words total): the first written before the murder, the 
second after you were arrested for the murder, the third during the trial, and the 
fourth after a verdict has been given. Describe events that took place during these 
times as well as your emotions.
Remember that:
• Each diary entry should be dated and should begin with “Dear Diary.”
• Trials don’t take place immediately after an arrest.
• The trial was a week long.
• You are writing from the boy’s point of view, so don’t just write about the 
facts — think of what he must be feeling every time he writes in his diary.