Motivation In Ayn Rand's Anthem, Equality 7-2521

Some people are filled with an insatiable desire to learn. In “Anthem” by Ayn Rand, the main character, Equality 7-2521, wants nothing more than to study the Science of Things and become a Scholar. Although this is forbidden for a Street Sweeper like him, he does research in isolation. He wants to join the Scholars because he is intelligent, inquisitive, and always driven to learn about the way things around him work. Equality knows he is smart, because he was constantly reminded of his transgression of having a quicker mind than his brothers growing up.

What exactly inspires people to create great things? Because they are doing it for their own benefit. In the novella written by Ayn Rand titled, Anthem, Equality 7-2521 is motivated to experiment and discover, but not because he is intending to assist his brothers and all of the population. Equality, although he had hoped to join the Home of the Scholars, works as a street sweeper trapped in a collectivist society where all of forms of individuality are banned. At the beginning of the story, Equality discovers a secret, underground tunnel where he slowly starts to discover technologies from the unmentionable times.

While it may initially appear that Victor’s attempts to create the creature are solely to benefit the scientific community as a whole, this is quickly proven to be nothing more than a mask for the unethical motives Victor truly is driven by. It seems that Victor’s primary goal is to gain an almost godlike status among his fellow humans. He believes that by creating life, he would assume the role of god, saying, “A new species would bless me as its creator and source; many happy and excellent natures would owe their being to me” (Pg. 54). It seems that in contradiction to his previous, more ethical justifications, Victor is truly motivated by the power and authority he would gain by creating a new species; and,

Throughout Equalitys’ childhood, he is looked at very closely by his teachers for having too much curiosity and asking questions of the past. Later on in his life, the Council gives him the job as “Street Sweeper” to try and avoid any source of creative thought that may cause a ‘bigger problem’. The job he was given was of pure sinister motivation, because of his curiosity, his intelligence and the belief that his independence is evil. Growing up, Equality has wondered what is beyond what he has been told. “We wished to know… about all the things” (23).

As a young man, he found it tough to get people to believe in his ideas and took coaching classes to get over his fear of communicating, especially in groups. But he was a gifted entrepreneur and turned a profit on everything he touched. Despite his painfully introverted nature, this young man went on to become the world’s most successful investor, and routinely features on the ‘world’s richest’ lists. If you haven’t guessed already, we are referring to Warren Buffett, an inspiration for every introvert who wonders whether he or she can make it in the world of business and high finance. Buffett is not the only high-profile individual you would never have described as an introvert.

The utopians described themselves as being to everyone else that no one was on their own. However, Bernard wanted to be different than everyone else, he felt different than everyone else. Individualism not only helps a society grow, but also help the people in it realise that they are good at doing. Richard Koch in this article “In Individual Good or Bad,” compared the pros and cons of individualism. He believes that “individualism has been an enormous success in encouraging ordinary people

Equality 's Motivation In the beginning the three most important motivations were Equality 's motivation to be a scholar, his drive, and his tunnel. Equality is a very smart man who thinks he has a curse. According to Rand "We know not why our curse makes us seek we know what, ever and ever."(Pg. 24) Equality is okay with being a street sweeper, even though he knows that he could be much more than just a street sweeper. Equality is driven to be like his fellow brothers.

As Victor immersed himself in science, specifically the creation of life, the male gothic traits of obsession, power, and impetuousness are exhibited. He becomes fixated with the creation of life to such an extent that he was unable “tear his thoughts from his employment” to initiate contact with his family or participate in habits that previously brought him joy, such as spending time in nature (Shelley 34). Victor rashness left no room to view his plan rationally and see any “arguments of its impracticability” or its potential consequences. His obsessive nature further spurred by the God like power he would feel upon successful creation of new species who “would owe their being” to him (Shelley 33). Victor’s ambitious nature was driven,

Dr. King questioned authority for what they did, unjust and unfair towards the community as a whole, but his ambition was the reason why segregation was put to rest. This will explain the pros an individual's ambition begins in creating a different world where everyone around them can be a part of and how they can use him or her as an epitome of ambition can be good for them. In other words, this value tends to become the reason why many grow into someone more responsible, mature, and overall optimistic of the future

When people set goals for themselves, they are set themselves up for success but learning how needs and motives influence motivation is important. The central idea behind Maslow’s theory is that unsatisfied needs motivated him until he became satisfied with his work. Everyone and I repeat everyone makes mistakes along the way and no one is perfect. Maslow may have made a few trial and errors along the way but he became known worldwide for his evidence as well as his hard work and dedication he put into his work. He stood for something and did not stop until he seen it through.