Theme Of Selfishness In Anthem And 'I Get Out'

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Can being selfish ever be acceptable? Anthem by Ayn Rand and the song “I Get Out” by Lauryn Hill share a similar theme relating to selfishness. “I Get Out” expresses the theme that man should be selfish, with Hill singing of reaching a new and better life strictly for her benefit . In comparison, the theme of Anthem is that one should praise man’s ego and, again, allow themselves to be selfish. Anthem focuses on standing out from the crowd and expressing individual interests for their own sake when Equality, a young man forced into a collectivist society, finally chooses to escape to an independent land.. Both Anthem and “I Get Out” possess the similar theme that man should be selfish, based on both Hill and Equality’s knowledge of better life, their repression by leaders of their society, and the strength of their quest for freedom. First, Hill in “I Get Out” and Equality of Anthem both know of the better world beyond them. This appears evident when Hill says that “Knowin’ my condition/ Is the reason I must change” (Hill). Hill explains that she is aware that her current state is not what it could be and therefore wants to change to reach a better place. In “I Get Out”, Hill refers to her society as being kept in a box with “Psychological locks” (Hill). She feels controlled by her society, which encourages her to look toward a better life in a pursuit of self-improvement. Additionally, In Anthem, Equality refers to the leaders of his society as a “creed of corruption” (Rand 97). He considers all the collectivist thoughts pushed into his mind for all his life, a tool, used by this “creed”, to encourage sameness and to prevent any opinion altering from theirs. Both Equality and Hill feel as though they belong to their society which lead them to follow the theme that man should be selfish for their own

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