Quote 2
The
man who has everything figured out is probably a fool. College examinations
notwithstanding, it takes a very smart fella to say “I don’t know
the answer!”
At the close of Act One, Drummond reassures
Rachel that she need not worry about Bert’s confused state. These
lines emphasize Drummond’s belief that intellectual curiosity—which
inherently involves uncertainty—is essential to an individual’s
growth. To Drummond, absolute values close people’s minds to the
truth, for they restrict people’s investigation of problems that
might call such values into question. Drummond feels that the human
mind demands that any given issue be approached from all possible
angles. He rejects a literal interpretation of the Bible as a solution
that is reached too easily. Through his questions to Brady, Drummond
later proves that such an incessantly literal interpretation of
the Bible necessarily contradicts itself. Drummond resists the church
because it rigidly dictates the moral behavior of small-town America
and forces its members to accept its terms without question. Drummond’s
ideas, on the other hand, proceed not from answers but from unknowns.
