The power and knowledge of individualism is lost in the novel Anthem and Ayn Rand does a good job showing us the downfalls and troubles the future might hold. The society that Equality 7-2521 lives in is harsh and believes only in collectivism instead of individualism. The main collective government figures are known as Council of Scholars and Council of Vocations who make the rules and strictly force each brother in the society to follow each rule. They are forced to be alike in every way and live for each other instead of themselves. “We strive to be like all our brother men, for all men must be alike” (Rand 19). This is something that is not taken lightly and anyone that goes against this will have to go to the Palace of Corrective Detention…
Ayn Rand’s novel Anthem is about the main character Equality 7-2521 who struggles to live in a communist society. Equality is an intelligent and very ambitious person who dares to break the rules of The City. By following his heart, he discovers that he is worth a lot more than what he’s been taught. Once he and his love, Liberty 5-3000, break away from their toxic home land, they discovering the idea that individuality is more important than the collective “we”. In the woods, the two lovers find an abandoned house and they rename themselves Prometheus and Gaea. Ayn Rand chose these names because of how similar Equality and Liberty are to the mythological creatures.…
What is egoism? Something that Prometheus seems so interested in. Egoism is a doctrine that individual self worth is the motive behind all conscious action. In this day in age being an egoist is wrong, but in Prometheus society being an egoist wasn’t even heard of. Why is it that Prometheus writes down “ego” at the very end of the book on page 105 of Anthem.…
Ayn Rand perfectly captured the idea of a collectivist society in her book, Anthem, by creating a vivid image of the dangers of losing one’s sense of self. This concept can be applied to modern times, much like Equality does when proclaiming his anthem: “I understood that centuries of chains and lashes will not kill the spirit of man nor the sense of truth within him” (98). His statement personifies a man’s spirit,the perseverance of man, and implies that there are no restraints strong enough to thwart human nature.…
Have you ever done something, thinking you’re doing the right thing, and then suddenly things get flipped around and now you’re the one getting in trouble? Having all of your technology taken away as a consequence? In the book Anthem, written by Ayn Rand, Equality 7-2521 experiences something a little similar, only he is the one discovering technology.…
The concept of egoism is presented in Anthem, authored by Ayn Rand, using the principle that every man’s primary obligation should be toward his own well-being. Once Equality realizes what the sacred word to his society is, he begins to write about how the concept of altruism should not be placed at the root of a man’s heart, rather the concept of egoism. As Equality sits with his journal he writes, “For the word ‘We’ must never be spoken, save by one’s choice and as a second thought” (Rand 96). Equality believes that man shall not serve others, rather service themselves in an almost ‘selfish’ manner, with the exception of a man’s choice to work alongside other people. In summary, Equality believes that egoism should be the primary obligation…
A young man given the name, Equality 7-2521 is living in a futuristic dark age. He is withheld from a name to prevent any form of individuality, but given a word followed by a series of numbers on an iron bracelet to be worn on his left wrist, as a form of identification by the World Council. Equality 7-2521 has made a moral discovery throughout the story Anthem by Ayn Rand, as discovering his individuality and as he has changed from one who believes that the World Council states all truth, to one who has progressed into someone with the ability to compose ideas and moral values for himself.…
In Ayn Rand’s Anthem, the main character is brought up into a society where individualism is never an option. In secret, this character broke these laws and constantly made what was called “transgressions” to the book’s authority figures. Near the books closing he states “Why the best in me had been my sins and my transgressions; and why I had never felt guilt in my sins.” Prometheus has came to understand that he was different and that his sins gave him his happy ending. For being different it made those around him believe that It was indeed sinful.…
Regardless of the novella’s motives, Anthem easily draws in the reader to Equality 7-2521’s plight and journey through Rand’s dynamic writing style and her captivating ability to have her audience get glimpses of and empathize with the character’s soul through strong imagery and meticulously organized words to give a new depth to Equality’s entries.…
Collectivism is primarily the foundation of people who cannot survive as independent individuals. Since said people obviously aren’t individualists, no one is brave enough to go against their society’s norms, therefore retaining the collectivist society. A perfect example of this is in the novella Anthem by Ayn Rand. From the start of this brilliant novel, Equality 7-2521, later Prometheus, the main character and protagonist is trying to find himself, along with what he was placed on this earth to do. Soon enough his journey begins making sure to rebel against the Council of Vocation, since they are the only ones holding him back from his great overtake. Throughout the short story, more than just a light box is discovered; It becomes evident how The Council of Vocations appeal to certain ideas like trying to eradicate the factor of envy in order to justify their collectivist society, as well as how identical the society in Anthem and the one we live in today are, in terms of collectivism.…
"It is a sin to think words no others think and to put them down upon paper no others are to see,” this is the first sentence in the book Anthem. It shows that they are not allowed to even think differently or say differently, everyone has to think the same. It is said by Equality 7-2521 that he was beaten by his teachers for being smarter, and he is told that he was told he is sinning since he is taller than all of the other people. They are not even allowed to know what they look like, because it might make them have different thought and that they don't fit in the society.…
The captivating novel Anthem, by Ayn Rand, concentrates on Equality’s changes in his moral assessment. In this story, Equality fights to become independent and to improve the quality of life for him and people around him. Equality, along with the other characters in this novel, thinks it is a sin to write at the beginning of the book. By the end, he has no shame in his sins and has a different moral assessment and perspective of his actions. Equality takes steps throughout the book, starting with the word “We”, and ending with “I”. He puts his instincts to the test, writing and making inventions.…
In “Anthem,” Ayn Rand emphasizes the diction of the novella, by using the negatively connotative words to achieve a tone of immorality. For example, when Equality is in a tunnel and writing, “It is a sin to write this. It is a sin to think words no others think and to put them down upon a paper no others are to see. It is base and evil....there is no transgression blacker than to do or think alone. We have broken the laws”(Rand 17). Also, “Strange are the ways of evil. We are false in the faces of our brothers. We are defying the will of our Councils...The evil of our crime is not for the human mind to probe . The nature of our punishment if it be discovered, is not for the human heart to probe”(Rand 36-37). Equality’s thoughts create a feeling of wrongdoing and dishonesty which are factors of…
Ayn Rand wrote Anthem to put an many ideas in your mind. Three of them, individualism, identity, and egoism, I’ve shown light too. These ideas are not commonly thought about in our society due to the current idealogy of being a part of the crowd or fitting in. Many children are taught to treat others like they want to be treated. This idea is direclty related to equality, an idea which Ayn Rand exaggerated in Anthem. Currently the world is pushing for equality among everyone, but is that really a good thing? Ayn Rand exposed the dangers to a so called perfect idea for society and made sure her readers still carry values based upon self benefit . Although she used many literary tools to show these ideas, I choose to focus on how repitition was a key tool used by…
Individual rights in anthem was very scarce for everyone except the people on top of the power pyramid. For Equality, all he had was the right to live, breath, sleep and eat but even those last two were forced at certain times of the day. In society, many people take advantage of other things they consider individual rights. The biggest individual right that we have that Equality didn’t is the right to be free.…