Intelligence Over Power In Ayn Rand's Anthem

The rulers have appealed to their people with such idealism, promising a world free of jealousy or unfairness. “I owe nothing to my brothers, nor do I gather debts from them. I ask none to live for me, nor do I live for any others. I covet no man’s soul, nor is my soul theirs to covet. ”(96)

They were not loyal to a party or a country or an idea, they were loyal to one another.” My textual evidence to support my claim is this; “The workers are human beings,” he said aloud. “We are not human” (Smith 165). It seems that Winston knows that his world is dystopian, but he accepts it how it is, because he realizes that he can’t do anything about it. This compares to modern American society very well because the individuals in this world know that something is wrong with it, but it involves a higher power than them, so they can’t change it.

Why is it that even the worst off in our society would just assume continuing to enact a story in which they are miserable? It’s hard for people to give up a story because they don’t even realize there is one. Like the narrator in the beginning was oblivious to even a creation myth, but was acting out the principles it taught without even realizing where he got these principles. Even the worst off in our society would continue enacting this story because they have been conditioned to believe that any other life out there is worst.

“An irrational society is a society of moral cowards—of men paralyzed by the loss of moral standards, principles, and goals. But since men have to act, so long as they live, such as a society is read to be taken over by anyone willing to set its direction. The initiative can come from only two types of men: either from the man who is willing to assume the responsibility of asserting rational values--- or from the thug who is not troubled by questions of responsibility.” Ayn Rand explains that in order to survive in an irrational society, you have to overcome the fear of moral judgement, and let that be your responsibility. In “Anthem”, Equality 7-2521 understand the evils of an irrational society—which is fear of moral judgement.

Quote 1: Quote: According to Zinn, “I made clear my abhorrence of any kind of bullying, whether by powerful nations over weaker ones, governments over their citizens, employers over employees, or by anyone on the Right or Left, who thinks they have a monopoly on the truth" (7). Paraphrase: Zinn emphasizes that he doesn’t support the acts of the majority believing they have more power over the minority, politically. Partial Paraphrase: Zinn openly shares his contentious political views by declaring his “anger at racial inequality, my belief in a democratic socialism, in a rational and just distribution of the world 's wealth” (7).

All Equality has known from himself is that he was an outcast to the society. As many people feared Equality’s differences, they told him lies. Equality’s assessment of his sin is correct because at the end of Anthem, Equality now sees his so called curse as a gift and plans to show the society how it is a great thing to be different. “We were born with a curse.”(18) Equality is gifted with knowledge and curiosity but through his life, people have taught him that he had a curse because he wasn’t

He refused to give up the light that he discovered, because he knew the leaders of the society would destroy it, and his view of the leaders in the society changed as he began learning about the outside world. The more he learned about that world, the more he realized how limited and unfair the society he lived in truly was. Towards the beginning of the book, Equality 7-2521 followed the rules of the society and did not question his leaders. However, towards the end of the book he started denouncing them, and began to rebel.

I understood why the best in me had been my sins and my transgressions; and why I had never felt guilt in my sins. I understand that centuries of chains and lashes will not kill the spirit of man not the sense of truth within him.” Equality realizes what the importance of his “curse” was that the thing he called a curse was a desire to learn and achieve knowledge. The great “We” was a monster that did not let him move forward but now he was finally free. Most importantly we see that Equality realizes that even if they had lashed him nothing could kill his spirit he was independent he was different.

However, the narrator hated his own brother and plotted to kill him several times. Just because someone is not physically able to do something does not give them a good reason to kill them. The story teaches the reader to love people for who they are, not what they look like. This can relate to pride because when people are full of themselves, they tend to only care about

This social pressure that he feels results in him naming himself ‘Blurryface’ because he 's just another nobody until he becomes societies somebody. In addition, the judgement he receives being a nobody makes him genuinely care about what the majority thinks. This is similar to the experience that The Joads have because they are trying to make ends meet in a new place, and be more than the labels given to them by society. Lastly, hopelessness has always been prevalent in our world.

Equality succeeds in finding happiness and meaning in life by learning to be an individual and taking risks that no one in his society dared to do

“When men saw the Great Truth which is this: that all men are one and that there is no will save the will of all men together.” Equality 7-2521 lives in a world where the government bans all forms of individuality. For instance it is a sin to “think words no others think and to put them down upon paper no others are to see.” Equality was born with a curse “It has always given us wishes which men may not wish. We know that we are evil, but there is no will in us and no power to resist it.

Demagogues such as himself threaten the very foundation of republic virtue because their actions are not restrained by obligation to their brothers. When a man loses his capacity to sympathize, the most remarkable quality of human nature we have at our disposal, then that man is no longer driven by the general will and has proven himself a danger to all

(285) Leaders who show mercy, love, and establish friendships are taken advantage of and lose their power. It is important to be seen as a cruel and with an army to exemplify the strength and unity of your army; therefore, being seen as fearful and cruel on a greater and global level. A prince should not be worried about being considered cruel “for without reputation he will never keep an army united or prepared for any combat” (Machiavelli, 284); moreover, while this attains respect for him and he is now perceived as terrifying, he benefits greatly from acting inhumanly cruel. With cruelty comes major respect and nobody will question the prince or his decisions, instead he will be met with pure obedience and reach stability and harmony in society. Thus, a prince maintains his power through the act of mercilessness and is reciprocated with high esteem and fear from his citizens.

There are many examples of irony in Anthem that the author uses to carry the plot and deepen the story and an example of irony that some people don't get until later in the book is the idea of "we". Therefore it is ironic that a person wouldn't know the word for one's self. The definition of irony is "the expression of one's meaning by using language that normally signifies the opposite, typically for humorous or emphatic effect. " The use of we is to really push the idea that Equality 7-2521 only thinks as a group. This example is dramatic irony because the readers of Anthem know that Equality 7-2521 is an individual yet still calls himself "we".