Analysis Of Ayn Rand 's ' The Fountainhead '

Ayn Rand was truly a remarkable woman and accomplished an astonishing feat throughout her career and her philosophy continues to affect many people’s lives. Through her works of fiction and her essays later in her life she discovered a whole new philosophy, a philosophy for living on earth. This vision has inspired countless people to take charge of their own lives.

Character development is vitally important in Anthem. As we watch Equality 7-2521 change from a state of guilt and unhappiness to a state of pride and self-worthiness, the process creates the bulk of the story elements. One of the most important instances that show how much Equality has changed occurs in Chapter 8. At the end of this chapter, Equality bursts into laughter after thinking about what has happened. Equality laughs when he remembers that he is the damned because he feels liberated, not ruined.

In this paper, I will be talking about the book called Anthem by Ayn Rand. I will be talking about characters such as protagonists and antagonists and how some characters impacted the story. I will talk about the setting, conflicts, and the plot of the story. I will also talk about literary devices such as point of view, symbolism, mood, tone, and theme.

Rand Paul favors Ayn Rand and her views. Especially when it comes to her economic and political views. “Ayn Rand wrote a novel, Anthem, back in the 50's. And it's a dystopian novel. In that novel, individual choice is banned, and the collective basically runs society.” Rand Paul uses her book to inform what could happen to the society if we let all government control what we do or

Imagine a world where everyone is equal; living a life that feels almost programmed. Humans may not realize the impact freedom, technology, and independence has on our daily lives; however, Anthem by Ayn Rand demonstrates the importance of these rights. The story portrays the life of a young man, Equality 7-2521, living in a society that is built on severe rules and laws. These laws are designed to eliminate individuality, resulting in an extremely controlled environment. Due to the laws, Equality 7-2521 rebels against the society. For example, Equality 7-2521 was given the job as a Street Sweeper but realized life was unchallenging for him, and was punished for going beyond his limitations. Equality 7-2521 understands that solitude is

Collectivism is a very common theme in Ayn Rand’s writing. From Anthem to The Fountainhead, her opinion is very clear: individualism is the source of freedom and joy, while collectivism is the root of sorrow and slavery. In Anthem, the main character, Equality 7-252, has grown up in a collectivist society that has remained strong for centuries. In that society, no one has had the choice to do what they want to do, love what (or who) they love, and simply be who they are. That society praises the idea that men live only for each other. Living for oneself is evil, a Transgression. The idea of “I”, “Me”, and “Mine” has disappeared, dragging the precious words along with it. Throughout the plot, Equality 7-2521 is seen both unintentionally and intentionally defying his society. At first, he condemns himself, describing his evil acts and mind and labeling his different mindset as a curse. “We were born with a curse. It has always driven us to thoughts which are forbidden.” (Rand 18) He is also condemned by others, for things he cannot control. He is taller than most other people, he has preferences for what he wishes to become, and he has ideas and opinions. Yet when his life assignment is Street Sweeper, he rejoices. He sees that as a way to pay penance for his sins. Later on, however, he embraces his individuality. “I am. I think. I will.” (Rand 94) He is the first to accept the idea of individuality for centuries, and helps others accept it, too.

A. Authors work: Ayn Rand has written many novels, including The Fountainhead, Atlas Shrugged, Night of January 16th, The Virtue of Selfishness, Capitalism: The Unknown Ideal, and her first novel We the Living, Which was written in 1934 and was published in 1936.

What lies at the heart of each character of The Fountainhead is their own central principle, idea and drive. Roark, the hero and protagonist, embodies creativity, efficiency, independence, and reason. On the other hand, Lois Cook is the avatar of a notorious logical fallacy—the Appeal to Novelty. This fallacy states that because something is novel and never-before-seen, it is automatically better than an existing predecessor; the only criterion used to measure greatness is modernism. While this fallacy may be a rebellion against the familiar, conceivably stagnating “don’t fix it if it ain’t broke” mentality, it manages to be only a complete reversal of the philosophy, providing no further reasoning as to why the novelty is actually better.

Anthem could be placed into many different categories such as characterization, tone, and theme. Characterization would be when he was being rebellious and outgoing. The tone of this book is bitter and out of the sorts because at first he was following the rules then he got lashed and then he escaped and got to be free. The last category would be theme and this is Equality actually being an individual and understanding himself for the first time in his life. Rand understood the means of collectivism and how much Equality will change throughout the book.

Would you like it if the government had complete control of you? For example, the government might tell you who you aloud to interact with, or they could tell you what job that you have to go to every single day, and where you are allowed to live. The government should not have the right to control an individual because a person knows what's best for them, such as who they from relationships with, what they do for a living and what their lifestyle looks like.

Throughout the Novel The Fountainhead the main conflict between Individualism and Collectivism is put on display. Howard Roark, the embodiment for individualism, creates buildings that are not currently accepted in society. Throughout the course of the novel he is fighting Ellsworth Toohey, the embodiment of collectivism. Toohey feels that people should do what everyone likes and individuality should be non-existent. These two ideas couldn’t be more different and are constantly clashing.

My hands... My spirit... My sky... My forest...This earth is mine...” (Chapter 11 Paragraphs 1-2)

Thesis~ Ayn Rand conveys Individuality and self worth through her use of Diction, Imagery and Syntax to convey how it is important to be unique. Ayn Rand communicates individualism through her use of Diction, to convey the importance of being yourself. In “Anthem”, after Equality 7-2521 and Liberty 5-3000 leave their society to be free from the conformity, they find a home from the “Unmentionable times” and naturally start to explore. Eventually Equality 7-2521 finds a book and reads it, deciding that “[He is] done with the monster of ‘We’, the word of serfdom, of plunder, of misery, falsehood and shame”(59).

Vision a lifestyle where one perceives it as a sin to comprehend data more efficiently than of one’s peers; a felony to long for things that others do not wish upon. Where floods of white tunics and austere minds obliterate the Earth. A colony built upon leaders who asphyxiate anyone from infatuation of any object or significant being; moreover, a world suffocating in collectivism. Through exasperated transcription, Anthem brings about such a community; nevertheless, a world of black and white. Ayn Rand does not overemphasize the effects of totalitarianism, but amplifies it so that it is more effortless for one to enlighten he or she’s notion on the particular proposal. First, by analyzation of “Equality 7-2521”, and

“When one acts on pity against justice, it is the good whom one punishes for the sake of the evil; when one saves the guilty from suffering, it is the innocent whom one forces to suffer.”