Memorable Quotations from Clarence Darrow

Clarence Darrow was renowned worldwide as an outstanding criminal lawyer. Defender in a hundred or more murder trials, he formed a reputation as a friend of labor and of the downtrodden. His oratory and his philosophy made him well-known to millions, and he was defense counsel in some of the most widely publicized cases of his time. He was involved in cases concerning labor disputes or social issues, advocating the cause of the disadvantaged. Darrow's liberal views were based on the belief that the social and psychological pressures were essentially responsible for a person’s anti-social behavior. He was a champion of agnosticism, personal liberty, the abolition of capital punishment, and the improvement of labor conditions. The lost causes dominated his career, making him, because of his empathy with human beings and his fundamental understanding of their emotions, possibly the greatest murder defense lawyer of his era. His most famous trials were those in which the defendants were accused, or confessedly guilty, of murder. The objective was not always to bring about an acquittal, but to avoid the death penalty, or as he called it, “organized, legalized murder.” Clarence Darrow was a humanitarian and had no belief in God or immortality; to him man was merely a clod, a helpless organism continually condemned for getting out of step with the crowd, not for doing evil.

The profound, inspiring and famous quotations included in this book were taken from the original sources, which include Clarence Darrow's books, court cases, speeches, orations and lectures. Attorneys, students, and anyone fascinated by the law will enjoy the inspirational words from the very quotable Clarence Darrow, champion of the underdog.