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Collectivism vs individualism easy
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Individualism vs Collectivism in our Science and Technology
At Delta High school, a student may choose to either work alone or to collaborate with a group in order to finish a project. Both choices offer pros and cons when it comes to efficiency and the quality of work. In a group setting, students may get sidetracked, or the group itself may not be able to function properly. On the other hand, group projects allow broader opinions and valuable peer reviews. Choosing to do independent work will benefit the student’s work ethic, but will also increase the work load. So which is the better choice? The answer is found in the history of the world’s progress in science and technology. Technology does not excel solely from independent work, nor does
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In Ayn Rand’s Anthem, its society models the extremes of collectivism, where nothing is accepted unless it is created by a group of people: “The laws say that none among men may be alone, ever and at any time, for this is the great transgression and the root of all evil” (Anthem by Ayn Rand). It is a society where selfishness is a sin, and everything is done for the sake of the whole community. In the novel, the main character discovers electricity and, when confronting the community’s leaders, is scorned by them because of his independence and the foreign nature of the electricity because “What is not done collectively cannot be good,” (Anthem by Ayn Rand, page 75). That does mean that we truly must work as individuals to accomplish anything. When studying the history of inventions and innovations, it is clear that respected scientists, astronomers, and philosophers relied on the works and research of the past even though they stood as individuals. The history of humanity is based on collective learning, the building on, preserving, and sharing of knowledge over time. Collective learning is a healthy medium between collectivism and individualism. Without it, our technology and knowledge would remain …show more content…
As humans, we learn from the world around us, but we also learn from others. The geocentric view, the idea that the earth was the center of the universe, was supported for hundreds of years. It was not until Nicolaus Copernicus when the heliocentric view, the idea that the sun was the center of the universe, was introduced. Copernicus was mocked for such a bizarre idea, but a man named Galileo Galilei believed in Copernicus’ works and used it as a foundation for the evidence that he found which supported the heliocentric view. Although it was only after generations had passed, the heliocentric view became widely accepted thanks to the individual thinkers who used others’ theories and discoveries as cornerstones to their own. Even in schools, students are given past knowledge as the foundation to create their own opinions and hypotheses from. They are not taught what to think, but how to think. From United States History to literature, it is evident that an individual’s knowledge cannot be nourished without the knowledge and discoveries of others. In Anthem, the protagonist begins his journey of knowledge through experimenting by himself. But he gains greater understanding when he discovers literature from the past. Because of the knowledge from the past through books, Anthem’s protagonist was able to grow and discover what it is to be an individual. In the end, the
A captivating novelette in which a man’s priority is to serve only for his brothers, Ayn Rand’s Anthem illustrates a society that has suffered the ghastly consequences of collectivism. She depicts an oppressive culture in which the word “I” is unheard of and men belong to the collective “We.” Men’s lives are determined through the Council of Vocations, a group that maintains a powerful dictatorship by subjugating the public from the beginning of their lives. The idea that “If you are not needed by your brother men, there is no reason for you to burden the earth with your bodies” (Chapter 1) has been forced into average mindset of the vehemently maintained society. In contrast, Rand mocks the totalitarian civilization through the main character Equality. Since he was born, Equality possessed a quick mind and constantly strayed apart from his peers. Through his life, he shows an unwilling behavior to conform not only to his name, but also to the rules of society. After he is found guilty of independent thought, he is sadistically beaten and dragged into the Palace of Corrective Detention, an unguarded jail that castigates the public of their wrongdoings. Shackles are unnecessary as a result of the brainwashed society and their compliance to obey orders, which consequently allows Equality to escape. In a collective society, citizens are denied their inalienable right of individualism, which ultimately eliminates all thoughts of opposition. Through their submission, the presence of their souls vanishes and society deems the collectivist tenet true. The lack of guards and old locks in the Palace of corrective Detention symbolize the evils that result from a collectivist society.
The society in Anthem is a very collectivist society, thus a single individual’s health and survival might not be as important as with an objectivist “society”. However, the society in Anthem does address health and survival in a collectivist way. By having the Old Ones not work and “the State take care of them” this society deals with one of the biggest health problems, old people (7). This society takes a socialist method of health care and the State provides for all of the Old Ones which shows how they are meeting the needs of health and survival. The society takes a different approach on survival. Because of the strong collectivism, individual lives do not matter and “there are no men but only the great WE”, as long as the WE survives any one person can die and the society will not care (3). Anthem’s society takes survival to mean the survival of the whole not the individual. This shows that society is not needed for the individual’s survival, as not only does this society provide little individual health care, Equality 7-2521 in the later part of Anthem is easily able to
You and I do not exist; government deems it so. We are one, a single body functioning for the collective good of society. Ayn Rand’s Anthem speaks to this collectivist doctrine while highlighting the implicit contradictions that impede its successful implementation. Collectivism is any philosophic, political, religious, economic, or social outlook that emphasizes the interdependence of every human. Collectivism is a basic cultural element that exists as the reverse of individualism in human nature (in the same way high context culture exists as the reverse of
Anthem by Ayn Rand is a soul-shifting and mind-blowing novella that explores the dangers of a collective, dystopian society. As a man named Equality 7-2521 stumbles through life, he realizes that he has a burning desire to learn and explore, traits discouraged by the society he lives in. In the City, there are many rules, and all of them shadow the idea that “we are one in all and all in one. There are no men but only the great WE. One, indivisible, and forever.” (3) Equality 7-2521, with his passion for learning and science, slowly breaks away from this iron rule set by society, and in doing so, learns of the importance of individualism and freedom. In Anthem, Rand’s use of literary devices such as symbolism, characterization, and imagery help develop and present the tone of the importance of individuality and the dangers of a collective society.
“Unlike a drop of water which loses its identity when it joins the ocean, man does not lose his being in the society in which he lives. Man's life is independent. He is born not for the development of the society alone, but for the development of his self.” - B.R. Ambedkar. A man’s identity is something that should never be left behind or forgotten about. A man’s identity is who he/she is, and it lets them know that they are different from everybody else, and not part of a collective society. In the novel Anthem, the theme of identity is explored through Equality 7-2521, in which he is stuck in a world where know one has an identity. I believe that identity is the most important thing to surviving on this world, because it leads to creation
Anthem is a short novelette written by Ayn Rand in 1937 and vividly expresses the Rand’s beliefs in praising the human being’s ego and rationalism that never changed during her life. From the literary point of view, Anthem could be compared with Neil Peart’s 2112 album as its basis can be observed in the song. Both works show a grim vision of a world of dark ages in the future where their main characters suffer from lack of free choice and struggle to find out their individuality in a fearful and ignorance society. Since there are many similarities between the novel and the song, this paper will compare and discuss the conflicts, discoveries, accomplishments, and the common theme of both works that involve the protagonists in their way to individualism and
In 1543 Nicholas Copernicus, a Polish Canon, published “On the Revolution of the Celestial Orbs”. The popular view is that Copernicus discovered that the earth revolves around the sun. The notion is as old as the ancient Greeks however. This work was entrusted by Copernicus to Osiander, a staunch Protestant who though the book would most likely be condemned and, as a result, the book would be condemned. Osiander therefore wrote a preface to the book, in which heliocentrism was presented only as a theory which would account for the movements of the planets more simply than geocentrism did, one that was not meant to be a definitive description of the heavens--something Copernicus did not intend. The preface was unsigned, and everyone took it to be the author’s. That Copernicus believed the helioocentric theory to be a true description of reality went largely unnoticed. In addition to the preface, this was partly because he still made reassuring use of Ptolemy's cycles and epicycles; he also borrowed from Aristotle the notion that the planets must move in circles because that is the only perfect form of motion.
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
During the 1950s, Soviet Russia tried to establish communism in many other countries in the world. The communist ideology instilled in Russia during the 1950s had a large influence on Ayn Rand’s depiction of Anthem’s society with the doctrine of collectivism. The novella shows a society in which everyone is under the control of a group of people who live only to serve others, and no one can do anything that would defy the collectivist beliefs. This community teaches its children to only use pronouns such as“we” and “our”, and separates its people from others who may be different than them. The main character, Equality, falls victim to these collectivist beliefs. Only until he was rejected by the World Council after announcing his discovery
It is common for individuals to envision a perfect world; a utopian society where everything is paradise, with equality, happiness, and ideal perfection. Unfortunately, Equality 7-2521 lives in a dystopian society, a world in which everything is far from perfect. Dystopian society is a place where many do not which to live upon. Equality 7-2521 is not fortunate enough to do what he enjoys. He is forced to follow rules and laws, which many of them he has already broken. Ayn Rand's novelette, "Anthem," is based on a dystopian society in which individuals are created to be "equals".
“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
Alice Rosenbaum, better known as Ayn Rand, was born in Petersburg, Russia in 1905. This inspired woman who loved Western films and plays was never thought of as a world-renowned author, but shortly formed into one. At a very young age, Ayn taught herself to read and soon after decided to make fiction writing her career. She was introduced to American history during high school and upon graduating she enrolled in her first University. At this same time, her family fled from their home town to Crimea, to escape the revolution. Years later upon receiving her first job as a script reader and stage extra, Rand published her first novel, We the Living, based on her years under Soviet tyranny. The novel took a turn for the worst when it was rejected
In a society, at what point does uniting to benefit the greater good suppress one’s right to possess individuality? The social and political construct of utmost unity is called collectivism, or the practice of emphasizing a whole picture rather than each individual component. The common theme of collectivism versus individualism is prevalent within the novel Anthem by Ayn Rand, wherein the individual motivations of the members of society are suppressed without their knowledge. While contributing to the greater good may have its appeal, one must learn that for this to be possible, individual sacrifices are necessary. The ultimately collectivist society depicted in Anthem is justified by its rulers through ideas of
... an individual, he has his own ideas, plans, thoughts, and is his own being and is looked down upon because of it. This book shows us that Collectivist societies do not work and they lead to brainless, incompetent people who have no meaning in life. The book's theme of individuality and identity show the downfalls of Collectivism vividly and very well. Throughout the book Anthem, the theme of individuality and one's identity, shown through Equality's own ideas, own love, and own ego, are vital to show Collectivism's faults.
Much to the dismay of the Church, two astronomers Galileo and Kepler had the audacity to challenge the authorities by suggesting that the sun-not the earth-was at the center of the universe. The church had a stronghold on the way the spiritual and physical world worked, so these discoveries only added to the Church’s resistance to their aims. Their discoveries came only after Kepler and Galileo began to question ancient theories about how the world functioned. These ancient truths were widely held but were inconsistent with the new observations that they had made. Kepler had discovered the laws of planetary motion which suggested that the planet would move in elliptical orbits, while Galileo followed with his discovery of the principle of inertia. Galileo concluded his finding b...