The war had also held out the promise of fuller participation in the nation's economic, if not social, structure to racial minorities and to women, who had been needed to work in the factories and to sustain the home front efforts while the men were away serving in the armed forces. Director Richard Brooks Writers Richard Brooks Evan Hunter Stars Glenn Ford Anne Francis Louis Calhern See production, box office & company info Watch on Prime Video rent/buy from 2. The basis for the blockbuster film starring Glenn Ford and Sidney Poitier, Evan Hunters The Blackboard Jungle is a brutal, unflinching look at the dark. This myth of American life was centrally ingrained in the social fabric of the country. A new English teacher at a violent, unruly inner-city school is determined to do his job, despite resistance from both students and faculty. For generations education had provided the entry into the American mainstream for countless millions of immigrants and offered the hope that with sufficient energy and dedication even the poor could rise from their poverty to become middleclass and prosperous. The main theme of the novel is the clash between a traditional American idealism which proclaims education the main goal and bulwark of a democratic society and the realities of what was happening in the city's schools after the war. Preview of The Blackboard Jungle Summary: The basis for the blockbuster film starring Glenn Ford and Sidney Poitier, Evan Hunter’s The Blackboard Jungle is a brutal, unflinching look at the dark side of American education and an early masterpiece from the author who went on to write the gritty 87th Precinct series as Ed McBain. The Blackboard Jungle by Evan Hunter eBook Details.