Religion versus science in the Scopes Monkey trialThe stage was set in Dayton, Tennessee. The lead actor in this series was a twenty-five-year-old science teacher named John T. Scopes. Scopes was under the direction of America's advance. The poster said The Scopes “Monkey” Trial. In 1925, John T. Scopes was encouraged to challenge the Butler Act. This law was passed by a small town in Dayton, Tennessee, to prohibit teaching contrary to that of the Bible. Teaching from an evolving text, Scopes broke the law and attracted national media attention. The media's focus on the Scopes trial effectively presented the contrasting ideas of a religious city and a changing country. The town of Dayton, Tennessee was both religious and stable. Residents of this town were seen holding signs reading “Read your Bible” (Ginger 93). The people here had adopted the teachings of the Bible in order to feel secure in a time of change. “In rural areas, particularly in the South and Midwest, Americans turned to their faith for comfort and stability” (Scopes 12). The city would keep what it knew. Dayton residents had no desire to travel with the Roaring Twenties. William Jennings Bryan was the principal advocate of the Butler Act and led the prosecution. Bryan was determined to defend every word of the Bible as literally true. In the deepest sense, he had to defend it; he needed reassurance and certainty, and from childhood he had learned to rely on the Bible as a source of assurance and certainty. (Ginger 41). Bryan would be the leader of a people who clung to religion and the past. In contrast to this small town were the advanced views of America. The twenties continued to roar toward modernism. “Technological advances, increasing material wealth, and the beginning of an empire seemed to herald the upward march of civilization, with America in the lead” (Duménil 6). In every direction, it was clear that America was moving forward. Transportation was a prime example of this advancement. Innovator Henry Ford presented his “Ford Miracle” to the public (Duménil 6). Economies and social values ​​also began to advance. “Dubious projects and get-rich-quick fashions…contributed to a tone of feverish frivolity” (Duménil 7). People started leading busy lives with the desire to get rich quick..