In chapter 12 of Ayn Rand’s Anthem, Equality 7-2521 discovers the true value of human pride and individuality. Equality 7-2521 and the Golden One change their names which symbolizes the abandoning of their collectivist views. Equality 7-2521 realizes that man must live for himself, not for another. Man, not men, are more prosperous when they take pride in themselves. Equality 7-2521 finally apprehends his thirst for knowledge and his true value. Equality 7-2521 states, “I understood my blessing thing…
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Throughout the story of Anthem, Rand illustrates the themes that collective society is impotent and that the concept of individuality can never truly be destroyed. Rather than making society blossom and thrive, the obliteration of individuality results in a governmental body that cannot promote actions that will improve the lives of its citizens. With individual thinking all but forbidden and consensus unfeasible as a result of this, the world spirals into a dystopia; society halts advancement…
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The world described in Ayn Rand’s novella Anthem is technologically primitive, which Equality 7-2521 attributes to mankind’s absence of individuality. Instead, men believe that “‘We are one in all and all in one. There are no men but only the great WE,’” which displays the extent to which men have lost their individuality. Equality 7-2521 blames this “worship of the word ‘We’” as the reason that “all thought, all science, all wisdom perish[ed] on earth.” This phenomenon of submission to the will…
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Ayn Rand once said, “The only power any government has is the power to crack down on criminals. Well, when there aren’t enough criminals, one makes them. One declares so many things to be a crime that it becomes impossible for men to live without breaking laws.” In the novella, ‘Anthem’, the main character Equality 7-2521 lives a “criminal” lifestyle in a warped society. In this dystopian civilization, it is a sin or transgression to be unique or different from one’s brothers, Equality does not conform…
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book Anthem is Ayn Rand. The book was originally published in 1938. I personally didn’t like the book but it did have a good meaning behind it. It makes the reader open their eyes and see how valuable they could be to this world if they just be there selves. Imagine a world where the individual has been repressed to the point that the word “I” no longer exists. The rulers of the society do not permit any individual to think freely; all must lesser themselves to the state. "Collectivism," Ayn Rand…
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Individuality Individuality is a good thing to have. It separates you from the person next to you. For example, your name. If you define your name, it most likely defines you. There is no one that is the same as you. Not even a doppelganger. Your individuality is your pride. In the novella Anthem, there is a character named Equality 7-2521. He has little to no individuality. He is a little smarter. He is a little taller than everyone else. But other than that he is the same as all the other…
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Essay The book Anthem, is very interesting. To me the most interesting yet also puzzling thing of this book are the consequences. Which the characters lack individuality throughout the book. One of the consequences from this would be the confusing language. For example, whenever Equality 7-2521 talks about his discovery of the lightbulb, it gets really confusing. If we ever had to do that for a day, I’d be lost. However, I understand what the author was trying to state. Which is to give the reader…
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A Collective Dictatorship: Suppression of Individuality In 1938, Ayn Rand, a philosophical, Russian-American novelist wrote the novella Anthem. In the same period, the United States was at war with Russia. Russia, then, became a communistic society. Anthem dives into a collective dictatorship world and partakes in a non-individualistic society. The collectivism dictatorship the community is governed by, suppresses individualism in the city. This new form of government reigns throughout the metropolitan…
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there a line to divide these two?” (Rand 61). Born into a collectivist society, Equality 7-2521 struggles with his curiosity of the world around him and his apparent individuality. The citizens are not permitted to see their likeness. They are not permitted to show any preference. All predilection and individuality is a crime in Anthem. Equality 7-2521 holds the word, “I”, in high regard, as it fills the void that conformity has developed. However, even with this newly found pronoun, Equality 7-2521…
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The book Anthem, by Ayn Rand, holds many key ideas that we need to keep in our society. This book is a reflection of what would happen if the government took away our individuality and freedom. This book shows how people would act and behave when everyone is completely equal. They have no freedom or right to think for themselves. In the book, the main character Equality 7-2521 has thoughts of escaping, and thoughts of having a normal life. Society has become so corrupted that he thinks wanting a…
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