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9th JUROR: […] I think I know him better than anyone here. This is a quiet, frightened, insignificant old man who has been nothing all his life, who has never had recognition, his name in the newspapers. Nobody knows him, nobody quotes him, nobody seeks his advice after seventy-five years. That’s a very sad thing, to be nothing.
This quote takes place near the beginning of Act I, as the 9th Juror explains his theory about why the old man could have gotten mixed up about what he saw the night of the murder. Here, the 9th Juror, an old man himself, explains the loneliness and loss of self that can occur in old age, when a person is cast aside by society and is no longer integral or respected. The old man is frightened by his own insignificance, and the 9th Juror hypothesizes that, given the weight of that sadness, the old man could convince himself that he saw something he did not. He may have been more likely to think he saw the boy or heard the boy’s voice through his ceiling. TAs a result of being cast aside by society, the elderly are more vulnerable to misperceptions and skewed interpretations of reality
10TH JUROR: Well, that’s the most fantastic story I’ve ever heard. How can you make up a thing like that? What do you know about it?
The 9TH JUROR lowers his head, embarrassed.
This quote takes place after the 9th Juror has made his case that the old man’s testimony might be unreliable. The 9th Juror argues that the old man would feel insignificant and would suffer because there was no one who would listen to him. By immediately dismissing the 9th Juror’s argument and accusing him of making up irrelevant stories, the 10th Juror inadvertently proves the 9th Juror’s point. The 10th Juror is particularly hard on the 9th Juror, calling him “you old son of a b*tch,” and he becomes so angry at the 9th Juror that the other jurors step in to protect the older man. The 9th Juror is embarrassed to be dismissed and overlooked. His own moment of significance and connection is undermined here by a younger man’s rage and bluster.
9th JUROR: That’s exactly the point this gentleman [He indicates the 8th JUROR] has been making. I mean, you keep shouting at the top of your lungs . . .
The 8TH JUROR puts his hand on the 9TH JUROR’s shoulder. The 9TH JUROR looks at him and sits.
The 8TH JUROR: I’d like to be a little younger. [He stops, unable to go on.] It’s very hot in here.
Here, the 9th Juror attempts to argue with the 10th Juror, who says that facts can be twisted in any direction. The 9th Juror says that that’s exactly the point of their entire deliberation, which the 10th Juror keeps interrupting by yelling about the boy’s race. In the middle of the argument, the 9th Juror falters. He is overcome and unable to go on. He’s mentally much stronger than the 10th Juror, who can’t handle the complexities of the deliberation and pushes back against nuance with rage. But, because of the 9th Juror’s age, he can’t match the 10th Juror’s overwhelming energy and bluster, and he must back down. In this moment, if he were younger, he could help put the 10th Juror in his place. As it is, he has to cede the floor to the younger jurors.
