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Collectivism and ayn rand
Collectivist Society Depicted in Ayn Rand’s Anthem Essay
Essay about anthem 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 Ayn Rand’s novella, Anthem, everybody in the dystopian society known to only speak and think plural. People in the society do not even think of being an individual, for they think it is sinful. In this novella, Rand shows her thoughts on her philosophy of Objectivism through Equality 7-2521’s change of thought that has evidenced by the use of ‘we and I’.
Equality 7-2521, the protagonist in the novella, knew how to only think in the plural. When he explained himself apart from everyone else, he only used ‘we’. He was completely with the thought of dependence and being like everyone else. “We strive to be like all our brother
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“I am done with the monster of ‘We,’ the word of serfdom, of plunder, of misery, falsehood, and shame”(Rand 97). He expresses his emotion of the hatred in his thought of being one. He is now completely over the thought of himself and the greatness of it. “And now I see the face of god, and I raise this god over the earth, this god whom men have sought since men came into being, this god who will grant them joy peace and pride. This god, this one word: ‘I’”(Rand 97). He has completely became self-centered, and rejects and wants to forget about the past he had as men. The author finally reaches the point she has tried to make, and shows her philosophy of Objectivism through Equality’s thoughts and new transition from ‘we’ to ‘I’.
Throughout the novella, Anthem, Ayn Rand shows her philosophy of Objectivism that you should become self-centered and think only for yourself. She shows this through the transfer from ‘we’ and ‘I’ in Equality's thoughts. She showed in the beginning of the novella, that being one man may cause less rebellions and trouble, but being one causes a lot of suffering to yourself. In the end of the novella, being yourself gives yourself happiness, even if everyone else is suffering. Rand wants us to become selfish and think only for ourselves because it
Equality 7-2521 aspires to be a self-proclaimed individual. In the novella, Anthem, Ayn Rand discusses of a dystopian society in which every man and women are set equal to each other. Equality is damned by the World Council after a discovery of light and electricity, and a contradictory belief in individualism. Freedom is an essential factor in the happiness of man. Equality is scorned for his different looks, mental competence, and independent beliefs but laughs when he recognizes that he should be glorified for understanding that his perception of life leads to contentment.
Many people seem to get entangled into society's customs. In the novel Anthem, the protagonist, Equality 7-2521, lives a period of his life as a follower. However, Equality eventually, tries to distant himself from his society. He is shaped to be a follower, but eventually emerges in to an individual and a leader. On his journey, he discovers the past remains of his community. Ayn Rand uses Equality's discoveries of self to represent the importance of individuality in a functional society.
Ayn Rand, in Anthem, illustrates a futuristic, socialist society. In the novel, Rand destroys any sense of individuality and describes the social setbacks endured after living ‘only for the brotherhood’. The individual person fails to exist and is but a ‘we’ and recognized by a word and a series of numbers rather than a name. Additionally, she describes the horrors encountered within this different system of life: from reproduction methods to punishments. Through the life of Equality 7-2521, Rand demonstrates a person’s journey from obedience to exile in this socialist society. Throughout the entire novel, Rand criticizes Marxist theory as she demonstrates socialism’s failure to suppress revolution, thwart material dialectic, and its detriment to humanity.
At the start of Anthem, Equality is a collectivist who knows there is something wrong with the world he lives in. This allows him to evolve into an individualist. Equality says , “It is a sin to think words no others think and to put them down upon a paper no others are to see. It is base and evil. It is as if we were speaking alone to no ears but our own” (Rand 17). Equality admits he has committed a transgression and hopes to be forgiven. Equality, at this moment, is living to the standards of others because he lives in a society where no man is to think differently than another. This contradicts Rand’s philosophy because she says that a man is entitled to his own happiness and that you are in charge of it, but since Equality is living to the rules of his society, he cannot find his own happiness, for he is almost forbidden to do so. Likewise, it states in the text, “I owe nothing to my brothers, nor do I gather debts from them. I ask none to live for me, nor do I live for any others. I covet no man’s soul, nor is my soul theirs to covet” (Rand 96). Equality realizes that he is not to live nor commit himself to the standards of others. He has come to the understanding, as Ayn Rand says in her interview, “That he cannot demand that others give up their lives to make him happy, nor should he wish to sacrifice himself for the happiness of others.” Equality finds his own happiness because he has found himself, and he has learned that he cannot put his happiness in the hands of others nor put the happiness of others in his own hands. This allowed him to find himself, and to find
Ayn Rand wrote Anthem as a critique of Communism, yet along with that she demonstrated her own belief system of individual ideals. Objectivism was aptly shown throughout the entire novella with the thoughts and actions of the main characters, Equality and Liberty in contrast with the universal thought of the city and society. Rand clearly showed her philosophy well in this story.
Ayn Rand, a contentious woman, the new favorite author to multiple people’s list. People who have read her magnificent book, Anthem, understand how exquisite and meaningful her words are. Books like Anthem are worth reading because it gives the reader more knowledge about controversial topics and it takes the reader to experience new places and new adventures. Equality, the main character, is a symbol. He represents many people today, living in countries like his society. Equality has to find his true identity first before helping the others. People are not allowed to believe in individualism, they should not have a identity of their own. Each person has a monotone routine to follow every single day of their lives. Each step a person takes
Ayn Rand’s Anthem is a politically satirical novel set in a future society that is so highly collectivized that the word “I” has been banned. The world is governed by various councils who believe that man’s sole reason for existence is to enforce the Great Truth “that all men are one and that there is no will save the will of all men together” (Rand, 20). Any indication of an individual’s independent spirit is swiftly and brutally put down, with the transgressors being punished with severe prison sentences or even death. It is this dysfunctional world that Equality 7-2521 is born into. The novel begins with Equality 7-2521 alone in a dark tunnel, transcribing his story.
In this novella, the characters have every aspect of their lives planned by the government in an attempt to make everyone indistinguishable. As a result, the characters have no sense of identity. For example, the characters have names such as Equality, Collective, and Union. Alone these names suggest a common core. Drastically, a complete loss of individuality can be noted by how the characters say "we" rather than "I", the forbidden word.
Based on Ayn Rand's book Anthem, Rand would definitely believe that there is a greater danger involved in communalism than in individualism. The book offers a vision of a distant retrograde future in which the candle is the newest invention; individualism has been completely suppressed; and one of the most commonly used words today, "I," is completely unheard of. The book celebrates the heroism of an individual - the main character, Equality 7-2521 - in his fight to promote individual achievement. Once banished for his individualistic beliefs, he and his girl, Liberty 5-3000, discover the wonders of human freedom and the word "I." With his newfound gift, Equality 7-2521 pledges to return to the civilization and destroy the oppression of the collective spirit, and liberate humanity into "a world in which each man will be free to exist for his own sake."
Equality does not know the word i so he refers to himself as we, but we know there can only be one equality. He also refers to everyone else by they, their or it. He does not use any genders for this doesn't matter if everyone is treated equally as one.
It's clear that Ayn Rand regards a fair level of egotism as an encouraging indication of self-interest, and consequently, Equality 7-2521 is content toward his actual perception. He is the typical and epitome of the man, and as the result, his intellect and individuality are both extensions of his own self and of each other. Accordingly, his body reflects his personal qualities of resilience and determination, and these qualities are like the features that he perceives and so lovingly respect when he sees the Golden One. When you look upon Equality 7-2521 and the Golden One, the body will never distinct itself from the mind which is what they really want, and because of that, they are depicted as in charge and without questioning who they really are. “Our face was not like the faces of our brothers, for we felt no pity when looking upon it.” Finally, there is one last development of Equality 7-2521 in chapter eleven, “I am. I think. I will.” These three short and very powerful sentences open the second to last chapter of Anthem, after which Equality 7-2521 has at last attained this magical Unspeakable Word. Ever since that moment, he speaks in first-person singular instead of first-person plural, which he highlights through the use of "I" or "me" in almost every single sentence of that
In the novel, Anthem, written by Ayn Rand takes place when mankind has entered another dark age. A man named Equality 7-2521 lives in a society where he struggles to live equal within the brotherhood. In the world he lives in people are told they exist only for the sake of serving society, and have no other purpose. Therefore, each individual is assigned a vocation as a permanent life career which determines who they socialize and live with. However, Equality being very different from his brothers, believes in individualism and rejects the collectivism society around him. The concept of individualism vs collectivism is portrayed in the story because individuality is unknown to the people where no one is unique or excellent in any way. The people
“And we know well that there is no transgression blacker than to do or think alone” (Rand 19). This quote shows that to think alone in this dystopian society is a significant sin that should not be committed. Modern society today puts a high emphasis on being and thinking as an individual, but in Ayn Rand's Anthem being an individual is slowly learned by Equality-72521 due to the requirement to think and be considered as one. In Ayn Rand’s Anthem a clearly different member of a dystopian society starts by always thinking of himself as a group member by using “we” and gradually throughout the book finds out that he is his own character and shows it by eventually finding the appropriate pronoun to show he is an seperate member and to only think
Mankind is all. By the grace of our brothers are we allowed our lives. We exist through, by and for our brothers who are the State. Amen’” (Rand 21). This chant repeated by all men has influenced the thoughts of all within the society. Changing the thoughts to say you are not unique but you live only for your brothers. Language has influenced the men and women to not think for themselves but only for the society itself. “’You are not one of our brothers, Equality 7-2521, for we do not wish you to be. …nor are you one of our sisters’” (Rand 43). Equality and Liberty have both just changed how they are thinking and see that neither one is like the others. They both see past the ways they were taught to think and have started to think for themselves and see the changes in each other. Within a society of “We” these two people have found the “I” within themselves but have yet to find the real
Visualize living in a civilization, where when it came to referring to yourself you had to use the word “we”. It would not be easy to express yourself, and having emotions would be difficult, almost impossible. In Ayn Rand’s book “Anthem” this is the life the characters have to live. The characters must refer to themselves as “we” and that they are equal to their fellow men. This is wrong for many reasons because the word “I” makes us who we are and without that we are nothing.