Coming from Russia during the civil war between a collectivist party and capitalism, author Ayn Rand grew up under the exposure of communism. She strongly disagreed with the sentiment of socialism, thus moved to the U.S. to experience the capitalist system. Here, Rand’s books became critically acclaimed through her unique perspective and characters. The majority of these novels is heavy handed and are heavily laced with biases that depict her strong distaste of collectivism. In the particular novella Anthem, Rand gives a warning to readers about the dangers of depending on the ‘we’ of society. The thought of ‘we’ becoming the primary focus of a society, in Rand’s opinion, is one of the most dangerous ideas. In this, the progression of society is destroyed when all are viewed as equals. By advocating this idea it is evident the she is depicting a political system in which all preference outside the will of all men is strictly forbidden. This means that in order to make decisions about advancements must be unanimous; otherwise, you have disobeyed the law by showing a true opinion since it is “It is a sin to think words no others think” (XXXXXX). Rand believes that succumbing to the will of ‘we’ and suppressing the individuality that is naturally innate in man will trap the society in a dark age for ever. For instance, when Equality 7-2521 discusses with the World Council, they mention the difficulty of facilitating the candle into society. The struggle derives from the difficulty of making decisions through a unanimous system. However, when Equality 7-2521 commits the “great Transgression of Preference”, his entire perspective of how things should be begins a foundational shift. In a society where differentiating from your fello... ... middle of paper ... ... not yet succumbed to the muddled masses of man and “are not like others” (XXXX). Similarly, the light bulb that he has produced in the realms of the dark tunnel produces a clean glow that will transferable to the homes of his brothers. Despite the primacy of its design, it is essentially meant to spread inner light to these brothers and enlighten them with knowledge.Subsequent to running away, Equality 7-2521 and the Golden One find a home from the Unmentionable Times, the past in which the current system is attempting to erase from society. This house is filled with windows, which allow light to fill the abode. Also inside this house are manuscripts that tell Equality of all of the knowledge that he has been missing and implements the information into the gaps that he had previously been faced with. Works Cited Rand, Ayn. Anthem. England: Cassell, 1938. Print.
In a year that remains undefined beneath a small city lit only by candles, a young man is working. He works without the council to guide him and without his brothers beside him. He works for his own purposes, for his own desires, for the dreams that were born in his own steady heart and bright mind. In his society, this is the greatest transgression. To stand alone is to stand groping in the dark, and to act alone is to be shamed by one’s own selfishness. The elegantly simple society that Ayn Rand has created in the novel Anthem has erased all segregation and discrimination by making every man one and the same with those around him; only Equality 7-2521 defies the norm with his ruthless
Rand explains the anatomy of the human, their various conflicts throughout their lives, and how the human is expected to react in certain circumstances. Furthermore, Ayn wrote this sentence in her essay, “But to pronounce moral judgment is an enormous responsibility” (Rand, 4). Judging someone by their mistakes takes a good amount of responsibility, when accusing someone there has to be evidence to support their claim. Humans do not go around the world throwing accusations at each other, if the world was like that, it would be a disaster. Equality has a lot of responsibility by becoming critical of the leaders of his society. He believes that there is more to the world, that there is still many unknown things to discover outside of his society. In fact, Ayn added on her essay the following sentence, “An irrational society is a society of moral cowards -- of men paralyzed by the loss of moral standards, principles, and goals” (Rand, 18). Equality always follows the rules, he nevers breaks a rule until he discovered that there is more to learn about the world. It is difficult for him to act a certain way, only because he wants The Council to be
Throughout history dictators such as Hitler, Mussolini and Kim Jong-Iland have used fear to manipulate thousands, if not millions, of people. Anthem by Ayn Rand explores a dystopian world where man is completely controlled. He complies to every order and demand without hesitation and is wholly satisfied with the way life is because it is all he knows. It is said to fully dominate a man, dictators must not only enslave his body but also destroy his mind. The manipulation in Anthem is far past fear alone; the leaders in Anthem also strip individuals of their identities, turn people into “robots” and leave the population naïve.
Ayn Rand’s Anthem is a politically satirical novel set in a future society that is so highly collectivized that the word “I” has been banned. The world is governed by various councils who believe that man’s sole reason for existence is to enforce the Great Truth “that all men are one and that there is no will save the will of all men together” (Rand, 20). Any indication of an individual’s independent spirit is swiftly and brutally put down, with the transgressors being punished with severe prison sentences or even death. It is this dysfunctional world that Equality 7-2521 is born into. The novel begins with Equality 7-2521 alone in a dark tunnel, transcribing his story.
In conclusion, it is shown that Equality 7-2521 makes his journey from a prisoner of collectivism and extreme social dependence to an exclusive freedom. Ayn Rand portrays a society afraid of change, rebellion, and the idea of any singularity at all. Equality first frees himself from the shackles of his brothers, allowing him to be an individual. Next he discovers that he, as one person, can judge the truth, others change the truth the way they want you to understand it. Finally, the reflection of himself in a stream shows Equality that he is not only mentally, but physically different than what seems to be a shapeless society. Ayn Rand conveys the theme of individualism through the development of Equality's ego, he is able to find the importance of one’s self and help society ameliorate itself for years to come.
Ayn Rand's Anthem shows us her view of our world united under what seems to be communist rule. For example their view of right and wrong; which Anthem portrays is a system of very strict rules which mainly make sure that everyone is involved in a collective role within the society in this system no one is considered an individual or that they can even think as an individual.
in his world it was believed that ?What was not thought by all men cannot
That is the main point that Rand seems to want to hit. There is no point of being your own self if you keep yourself directly chained to the ideals of society and not yourself. One of the other themes that she shows to the reader is that someone's love will not always be for all. Equality shown early in the book falling in love with someone named Liberty 5-3000. He has been taught to respect and value all his “brother” equally, but the thought of one touching Liberty drives him to anger. Liberty continues to be talked about almost every other chapter as she becomes a part of his life. In chapter seven, the book states, “Then a blow of pain struck us, our first and our only.”(Rand, 77) There is no regret for leaving or any hurt from being banished except Liberty. Love can be seen as a mere thought, but Rand seems to show that it is an emotion that shows the individual inside
Throughout the book “Anthem” the city has many rules and controls. Such as, not loving any person over another. Not saying the forbidden word “I”. Not stealing from another. With these rules and controls, Ayn Rand created a collective society, but with the idea of a utopian society.
When one looks at Equality’s character, they see intelligence, determination, inquisitiveness, and creativity. All of these are qualities of a true scholar in our society. However, in Anthem’s society, this is not the case. The reader does not exactly know how the Council of Vocations decides who receives what job. One thing for sure is that they don’t base the decision off of the people’s strengths; that makes the reader stop and think “are they really that ignorant?”
“There is fear hanging in the air of the sleeping halls, and in the air of the streets. Fear walks through the City, fear without name, without shape. All men feel it and none dare to speak” (Rand 46). Equality 7-2125, the main character in the novel Anthem, by Ayn Rand, lives in the City, where the citizens live in fear. Fear of the government, fear of the Council, fear of each other, fear of their ideas. Due to that fear, the City’s government, the Council, has brainwashed all of the residents in to their way of thinking. The things people in the City accept in order to live a life of obedience, drudgery and fear are the Council is all knowing, conflict is unacceptable, and everyone has to be the same.
One cannot be obedient to one’s power without being disobedient to another. In his article, “Disobedience as a Psychological and Moral Problem,” Erich Fromm argues people obey authority to feel safe. When one obeys, they become an ambiguous part of a whole, no longer accountable for actions or left on their own. In Ian Parker’s article, “Obedience,” analyzing Milgram's experiment, he claims people obey orders when there is no second option. According to Parker, if someone obeys an order, but there is no alternative, their accountability is lessoned. The two articles can speak to the tomfoolery that takes place in the motion picture, Mean Girls, which highlights a typical high school under the regime of the queen bee, Regina George, with her followers Gretchen Weiners and Karen Smith; the regime is usurped by a new girl, Cady Heron. Under the scope of Parker and Fromm, it can be argued that Gretchen was not disobeying Regina when she realigned with Cady, but actually remaining obedient to the social order of high school.
Ayn Rand was a great believer in the individualist way of life. Throughout the novel she convinced the audience that
In We the Living, Ayn Rand describes a girl’s battle against Soviet Russia and the struggle to remain resolved amidst the conforming society. Though some believe Communism is noble in concept, Rand agrues the opposite throughout her novel. Ayn Rand argues in We the Living the theory of communism is innately evil by demonstrating its failure in implementation, corruption within the party, and embodying the very argument with Kira Argounova.
In Ayn Rand’s novella, Anthem, mankind is a philanthropic machine. To achieve a common goal, the brotherhood disregards their own personal ends and nobly collaborates. For every decision comes from collective thought and every advancement, from joint action. However, one man in this machine malfunctions: Equality-72521. With an inquisitive nature, an innovative mind, and latent desire, Equality possesses the traits of a visionary. Every step Equality takes, is one away from the public-spirited system; another towards personal identity. Each step is an internal struggle, due to the machine’s brainwash and eloquent reprogram of Equality’s instinctive mind. But nature tells Equality that his DNA is nothing save himself. Nature tells Equality