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The Theme Of Ego In Ayn Rand's Anthem

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Why is being your self harder in the community where government establishes a set of rules? In the novel, the main character discovers something new and the government rejects it thinking it is an unacceptable idea. Anthem was first written in 1937, and published in 1938. Ayn Rand, who is a Russian-American novelist and philosopher, wrote it. Anthem takes place in a dystopian society in where the main character seeks for individuality, which is rejected in their community. Equality 7-2125 and The Golden One struggle against the world searching for ego. One of the most important themes in Anthem is ego because in their society, everyone follows a set of rules, and at the end Equality 7-2125 and The Golden One find freedom, and their true meaning. …show more content…

According to the Merriam Webster ego is “the opinion you have about yourself”. Ayn Rand portrays the theme ego in the anthem when Equality 7-2521 discovers the light bulb. When he discovers electricity, he notices that he is special, and that he has an actual meaning in life or community. Although all men are supposed to be equal, there he notices he is different. He stands out in his community. “We, Equality 7-2521, have discovered a new power of nature. And we have discovered it alone, and we are alone to know it.”(Rand 52). In this quote Equality 7-2521 states that all alone, by himself, he has discovered something new in the community, something no one else had ever discovered. Another way that Ayn Rand portrays the theme ego in the novel is when Equality 7-2521’s love, The Golden One, sees herself as a unique person who is very satisfied with her body. “Their body was straight and thin as a blade of iron. Their eyes were dark and hard and glowing, with no fear in them, no kindness and no guilt. Their hair was golden as the sun; their hair flew in the wind, shining and wild, as if it defied men to restrain it.” (Rand 38) In this quote Equality 7-2521 is talking about how beautiful and strong The Golden One is. Equality 7-2521 also says that The Golden One has a graceful

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