Juror Seven
Juror Seven is a conceited man. He is rushed from the start of the play, which gives us the sense that he finds himself far too important for jury duty. He is cowardly and ethnocentric, especially when it comes to Juror Eleven.
Evidence
Conceited
Act I, Page 317, Column 2: It is Seven’s turn to give his reasoning for voting guilty. He starts with “...We can talk all day about this thing…” He doesn’t even have the decency to recognize this “thing” as a case—a case that means life or death for a nineteen year-old boy. This shows how conceited he is. He obviously finds himself far too important to busy himself with jury duty. He does not appreciate the responsibility that is in his hands.
Act II, Page 328, Column 1: Eight is in the process of debunking the old man’s testimony by closely examining the diagram of the apartment where the murder took place. Seven turns to Ten and says, “Do me a favor. Wake me up when this is over.” Once again, Seven’s comment shows us how conceited he is. He sees himself above this case and his fellow Jurors. He shows no interest in making a fair trial. He only cares about leaving so he can go watch a play for his personal pleasure.
Rushed
Act I, pages 313-314: As soon as the Jurors take a seat, Seven opens his mouth with, “Right. This better be fast. I’ve got tickets to see The Seven Year Itch tonight. I must be the only guy in the whole world who hasn’t seen it yet. Okay, your honor, start the show.” Before the discussion has even begun, Seven is trying to rush the process.
Act I, Page 317, Column 2: It is Seven’s turn to give his reasoning for voting guilty. He begins with, “I don’t know, most of it’s been said already. We can talk all day about this thing, but I think we’re wasting our time…” Here is his chance to express his opinion on the case and all he can do is think about leaving so he can see his show. By saying “wasting time,” it is clear he believes that’s just what they are doing. He wants to rush the case so he can leave.
Coward
Act III, Page 334, Column 1: Seven changes his vote to not guilty just because he’s had “enough.” Moreover, he refuses to say why when Eleven pushes him. He chose to do what was easy (changing his vote to the majority side) rather than do what was right (stand for what he truly believes). This is definitely a cowardly act.
Ethnocentric
Act III, Page 334, Column 1: Eleven suggests Seven doesn’t understand the term “reasonable doubt.” Seven gets fired up and angrily says, “What do you mean I don’t understand it? Who do you think you are to talk to me like that? How do you like this guy? He comes over here running for his life, and before he can even take a big breath he’s telling us how to run the show. The arrogance of him!” As we know, Eleven is an immigrant. This comment by Seven is extremely racially discriminatory. He’s saying that because Eleven wasn’t born in America, he has no “right” to question true Americans. Seven clearly sees Eleven as inferior to him, just because of his ethnicity. This is a perfect example of ethnocentrism.
Act III, Page 336, Column 1: Eleven becomes very angry with Seven for changing his vote just because he’s in a rush to leave. When Eleven tells him off, Seven replies with, “Now wait a minute…you can’t talk like that to me.” Since Eleven is an immigrant, he cannot express his conflicting opinions with Seven, who is a natural-born citizen. Seven finds himself above Seven due to race. Again, this is nothing short of ethnocentric.
Act I, Page 317, Column 2: It is Seven’s turn to give his reasoning for voting guilty. He starts with “...We can talk all day about this thing…” He doesn’t even have the decency to recognize this “thing” as a case—a case that means life or death for a nineteen year-old boy. This shows how conceited he is. He obviously finds himself far too important to busy himself with jury duty. He does not appreciate the responsibility that is in his hands.
Act II, Page 328, Column 1: Eight is in the process of debunking the old man’s testimony by closely examining the diagram of the apartment where the murder took place. Seven turns to Ten and says, “Do me a favor. Wake me up when this is over.” Once again, Seven’s comment shows us how conceited he is. He sees himself above this case and his fellow Jurors. He shows no interest in making a fair trial. He only cares about leaving so he can go watch a play for his personal pleasure.
Rushed
Act I, pages 313-314: As soon as the Jurors take a seat, Seven opens his mouth with, “Right. This better be fast. I’ve got tickets to see The Seven Year Itch tonight. I must be the only guy in the whole world who hasn’t seen it yet. Okay, your honor, start the show.” Before the discussion has even begun, Seven is trying to rush the process.
Act I, Page 317, Column 2: It is Seven’s turn to give his reasoning for voting guilty. He begins with, “I don’t know, most of it’s been said already. We can talk all day about this thing, but I think we’re wasting our time…” Here is his chance to express his opinion on the case and all he can do is think about leaving so he can see his show. By saying “wasting time,” it is clear he believes that’s just what they are doing. He wants to rush the case so he can leave.
Coward
Act III, Page 334, Column 1: Seven changes his vote to not guilty just because he’s had “enough.” Moreover, he refuses to say why when Eleven pushes him. He chose to do what was easy (changing his vote to the majority side) rather than do what was right (stand for what he truly believes). This is definitely a cowardly act.
Ethnocentric
Act III, Page 334, Column 1: Eleven suggests Seven doesn’t understand the term “reasonable doubt.” Seven gets fired up and angrily says, “What do you mean I don’t understand it? Who do you think you are to talk to me like that? How do you like this guy? He comes over here running for his life, and before he can even take a big breath he’s telling us how to run the show. The arrogance of him!” As we know, Eleven is an immigrant. This comment by Seven is extremely racially discriminatory. He’s saying that because Eleven wasn’t born in America, he has no “right” to question true Americans. Seven clearly sees Eleven as inferior to him, just because of his ethnicity. This is a perfect example of ethnocentrism.
Act III, Page 336, Column 1: Eleven becomes very angry with Seven for changing his vote just because he’s in a rush to leave. When Eleven tells him off, Seven replies with, “Now wait a minute…you can’t talk like that to me.” Since Eleven is an immigrant, he cannot express his conflicting opinions with Seven, who is a natural-born citizen. Seven finds himself above Seven due to race. Again, this is nothing short of ethnocentric.