Lecture
Professor David Peimer
Saturday 24.10.2026
Professor David Peimer
Inherit the Wind: Great Classic Film of Scientific Rationalism vs Religious Faith
Saturday 24.10.2026
How to watch
This lecture starts on 24 October at 5:00pm (UK).
Summary
“Whoever troubles his own house will inherit the wind.” (Proverbs 11.29). But what is the 1960 film really about? Directed by the unique Stanley Kramer (Judgement at Nuremberg) and starring Spencer Tracy, the movie is more than a critique of intellectual suppression and McCarthy-era hysteria. It is also about more than a simple conflict between science and religion as it delves into the defence of individual free thought against the coercive pressures of dogmatism and institutional mind control. Drawing on the quote from Proverbs and our times today, we see how ideological extremism “troubles its own house” and leaves a fractured society to inherit the empty devastation of its own intolerance.
Professor David Peimer
David Peimer is a Professor of Literature, Film and Theatre in the UK. He has worked for the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, New York University (Global Division) and was a Fulbright Scholar at Columbia University. Born in South Africa, David has won numerous awards for playwriting and directing. He has most recently directed Dame Janet Suzman in his own play, Joanna’s Story, at London Jewish Book Week. He has published numerous books, including Armed Response: Plays from South Africa and the digital book Theatre in the Camps. He is on the board of the Pinter Centre (London), and has been involved with the Mandela Foundation, Vaclav Havel Foundation and directed a range of plays at Mr Havel’s Prague theatre.