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Similarities Between Individualism And Collectivism In Anthem, By Ayn Rand

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“We are one in all and all in one. There are no men but only the great WE, One indivisible and forever” (Rand 19). In Anthem, a science fiction novel, by Ayn Rand, the society believes in this philosophy. They believe one’s personality is not their own but a group’s identity, collectivism. In Anthem, Equality 7-2521 lives in a society that is restricted with rules that limits them from finding themselves. He is on a journey breaking laws and exploring the world to find his individuality. Equality 7-2521 realizes the contrast between individualism and collectivism within himself. Just like Equality 7-2521, Howard Roark in "The Soul of an Individualist", an excerpt from fountainhead a philosophical fiction by Ayn Rand, an architect, struggles …show more content…

He thinks about the life that he wants for himself and finally breaks from collectivism. He runs away towards the abandoned Uncharted Forest. When Equality gets there he already loves the atmosphere; he loves the feeling of being able to be free and to only care about himself. Equality mentions, “For, upon the blue of the sky below us, we saw our own face for the first time” (Rand 80). He is finally able to see himself for who he is. This river is representing his growth from a follower into a leader. He has now found himself as an individual who fights for what he believes, this is what the river symbolizes. Not only did he finally see his own reflection, but found the definition of I. Equality 7-2521 states, “It was when I read the first of the books I found in my house that I saw the word "I." And when I understood this word, the book fell from my hands, and I wept”(Rand 98). He has now found the impact of I. During his journey, Equality has always referred to himself as we, announcing I out of his own mouth is another sign of growth. Roark claimed, “ I came here to say that I do not recognize anyone’s right to one minute of my life” (Ayn Rand, "The Soul of an Individualist"). Just like Roark at this moment Equality only cares about himself and those he love. In comparison Ayn Rand has these two characters growing into an individual. She shows the importance of being your own person. In the end, Equality 7-2521 finds himself as an individual, conquering himself from breaking free from

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Have you ever heard common phrases such as “every man for himself”? Phrases like this are common sayings that have been knitted into our vocabulary which demonstrate our egotistic nature. From a young age, we’ve been told that we must take care of ourselves first, because no one else will. On the contrary, the book, Anthem, presents a society that is shockingly different. From not being able to use the pronoun, “I” to the idea of living only to serve to serve fellow men, the altruistic, “we” society presented in Anthem is the exact opposite of America’s egotistic, “me” society, due to the fact that we are a capitalist society and because of our society’s competitive nature.

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He now begins to work on his creation more. When Equality 7-2521 is finally confident with his creation, he decides to bring it to the scholars to show them what he has done. At this point he gets in much more trouble and they immediately shut down his idea. He decides to run away to the Uncharted Forest where he finds his own happiness with his loved one, the Golden One. Equality 7-2521 is seen as an egoist in the story because his only goal is to pursue his own happiness, and not to serve others and make them happy as well.

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Ayn Rand defines egoism as, “concern with one's own interest.” Although this may sound negative and selfish, it is the complete opposite in many cases. Ayn Rand is the author of the science fiction novel Anthem. The story is narrated by a young man who is given the name Equality 7-2521 by the council who have reformed the world into a collectivist society. In this society, they are taught that being an individual is bad, and because of this they must only live for their fellow men and never think for themselves.

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"We are one in all and all in one. There are no men but only the great WE, One, indivisible and forever’”(Rand 19). In Ayn Rand’s dystopian novel, Anthem, the citizens are trained from birth to think only in the plural, to the point where they cannot even conceive of individuals, but only see each other as part of the whole group. Rand’s protagonist, Equality 72521, begins the novel as a street-sweeper who is devoted to the group, but begins to move towards individuality as he progresses towards pure selfishness, as Rand believes we all should. Rand uses the words “we” and “I” to represent Equality’s journey from being dependent on the group, to being utterly independent of everyone.

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Individuality allows every person to be themselves and be different from each other. However, In Ayn Rand’s novella Anthem, Rand describes a society where the people were not allowed to openly be themselves, or else they would be punished for being different. The main character, Equality, notices he is different slowly throughout the novella, but kept continuing to be like everyone else for awhile. These rules exist in this society to strip human individuality in order to achieve total equality.

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There's so much emphasis on putting others before oneself that people often forget to look out for their own needs, as shown in this book. Ayn Rand successfully captures the negatives of an overrated ideology and presents an unorthodox perspective on the matter. In conclusion, Equality's true motives behind his work are much more selfish than they first appear to be. Equality strives to fulfil his own personal desire rather than contribute everything to society, and this isn't necessarily a negative thing.

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