The Soul Of An Individual In Ayn Rand's Anthem

In Anthem, citizens are constantly presented the idea that preaches collectivism and extreme loyalty to the state. The protagonist, Equality 7-2521, has grown up in this restrictive civilization and believed all he was told. Equality is exceptional in many aspects that are prohibited, and he has a tendency to disobey the society’s laws. Equality slowly embraces freedom as he discovers his own ego. The author demonstrates humanity’s need for ego through Equality’s futile attempts to be alone, to separate himself from his peers, to escape his restrictive society, and his desperate endeavor to discover a word for his ego.

Escaping Communism Ayn Rand depicts a communist world in her book Anthem, where the citizens live day to day identical to the one before. Equality 7-2521, a struggling man in the society, is set apart for his strive of wanting more than what the society gives him. Rand shows that in a world carried on in such a communistic matter, it leaves some struggling and at a loss to make do with what they have and to fit in. The book, Anthem gives a grand example of how others react to one’s differences, shunning them or giving a punishment. Equality 7-2521 has a compelling ambition to learn things which then helps him escape the society.

The author shows in the text how the people at the parties are of a high class with many expectations at Alfredo. Those expectations are what makes Alfredo ungenuine about himself because he is doing things that are not really himself. The author states,”Thus, Alfredo found himself caught in an intricate web: he was well aware that if he continued to accept the endless flow of invitations, he would never write another word, and if he hadn’t, his prestige…(4)” This quote shows the struggle between the social expectations vs his own expectations and what he wants. And the outcome of this struggle has been that he must meet the social expectations which make what he is doing ungenuine.

Equality-72521 lives in a society that shames him for being curious and having an imagination different from the others around him by telling him that he should not be different from others. By placing him into this situation, Rand proves to her readers that the only way to success is through trust in oneself, even through failures and the doubt of others. Rand depicts the theme that self-reliance on one’s own thoughts, actions, and curiosity is the key to success in her novel, Anthem, by showing her readers that taking risks is necessary to learn new things.

“The condition of man... is a condition of war of everyone against everyone. ”- Thomas Hobbes. This quote represents how humans, in their natural state, fight for their own benefit. It addresses the philosophical debate of nature versus nurture, and in The Lord of the Flies by William Golding, his views of this debate are expressed.

“A man cannot become a hero until he can see the root of his own downfall,”Aristotle. In Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, John Proctor, the main protagonist of the play faces several situations in which he struggles both internally and externally; all of the struggles that Proctor encounters throughout the story heavily affect those around him, but most importantly they impact the way that he perceives Salem and his own life. Truthfully, the troubles that Proctor experiences in life are the most impactful occurrences in The Crucible because they reflect the righteousness that is within him, even in times of corruption; it is ultimately Proctor’s ability to discover righteousness that allows him to be seen as an tragic hero. It can also be said

In order to counteract this sociological phenomenon, the late Ayn Rand’s Anthem should be required reading for all high school students. Although I have several intellectual qualms with the book’s author, its core message is incredibly powerful: even in the midst of oppressive powers, individualism is the most important aspect of the self. The main character discovers in his brief adventure that his ultimate purpose in life can only be created by himself, not by anyone else. He learns that it is more important to be a freethinking individual with a unique personality than to become one of the many impressionable robots of which his society is

In the novel, The Kite Runner,the lead character, Amir, is often made to resemble those that surround him. Amir is always defined by other characters and never truly gains an identity of his own. Without a defined view of himself, Amir defines himself by the mistakes of his past. Amir defining himself by his mistakes results in him becoming infatuated with them, as they are no longer just actions, but they are a part of his identity. The parallels the author draws between Amir and other characters emphasizes Amir’s guilt over his past actions; Amir’s obsession with his guilt causes him to become self absorbed, as he is focused solely on his guilt and not on how his past actions have affected others; as a result Amir is never fully able to redeem

When Gatsby’s dies no-one goes to his funeral. This illuminates that even though he had large parties with many people at them. His relationships were not genuine and no one truly cared. In conclusion, through Barret Browning’s sonnets and Fitzgerald’s novel

“Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power.” This quote by Abraham Lincoln focuses on the level of honesty, integrity, and compassion an individual can bring to a relationship, a community, and the world. It forces the risk of the possibility of corruption that comes with power. That a man or woman will use their power for self serving purposes to achieve his or her ultimate goal no matter what the cost to others may be. This occurs in The Crucible by Arthur Miller where Abigail, an unmarried girl with a tainted name, obtains power through her false confession of dancing with the Devil and her attempts of incriminating others of the same.

As King explains how Socrates created tension to increase the knowledge for mankind, I find myself thinking on today’s society. Unfortunately, World tension is currently on an increase resulting with violence as an answer to the problem. Dr. King created “tension” to voice this matter of injustice but nonviolently. His motivate to bring peace and brotherhood to all races, color, and culture was an uphill battle but nevertheless, he was optimistic of the future.

In the book Anthem, Ayn Rand uses diction, imagery, and syntax to create a confident tone in Equality 7-2521 to show how he is changing for the better. Equality learns that individuality is ok and states “ I am done with this creed of corruption,” to emphasize that he’s “done” with how the governing body brainwashed him and that he now has his own views on society (55). Equality thought all the things the governing body wanted him to think, but as he broke off he realized that none of it was true. He did not want to live by the standards of the governing body so he broke through the standards and started to individually listen to himself. Equality grew up with the impression of everyone should have the same thought but, the individuality

In Ayn Rand’s novella Anthem, she writes about mind, body, and self in a collectivist point of view. In this text, Equality 7-2521 lives through his society. He is scolded for being smart and standing out from his brothers. He grows up and defies the laws and then runs away with his sweetheart they then become immune to their previous world in the forest. In a collectivist society there is p self, no opinions.

Is it possible that Equality didn’t make a wise decision during his time in Anthem? Should he have given away his light bulb so the scholars would destroy it? In Ayn Rand’s Anthem, a man named Equality struggles to accept the way people live in his town. His brothers are brainwashed into believing their lives mean nothing.

Anthem Essay Topic 1 Ayn Rand's Anthem depicts a collectivist society where each person is stripped of his/her individuality and forced to do only things that work to better society. The protagonist, Equality 7-2521, has just invented some sort of lighting creation similar to the common lightbulb. Equality knows that his new invention may have a huge, and positive, impact on mankind. However, his knowledge of the prosperity that his creation could have on society is not what causes him to experience feelings of satisfaction and pride while constructing it. Equality's main source of motivation for creating the lightbox is to feel like he has something all to himself that another person is yet to have, and to experience a sense of accomplishment.