Anthem Essay Contest Paper

Novelists create science fiction novels that represents what today’s society could possibly look like if the government has too much power. Today’s society would fall into a state of corruption, where nothing belongs to a single person and everything is owned by the government. It would be a place where people cannot openly voice their thoughts or opinions without getting in trouble with the powerful government. Ayn Rand’s science fiction novel, Anthem, depicts a dark vision of the future world where individuality is not permitted to exist. The main character, Equality, sets himself aside from the other people living in society. He knows that he is different, but with a sense of naivety, he finds his independence wrong, but he cannot help it. Liberty, the female character in which Equality has feelings for, also finds herself to be different from others and follows Equality’s path. In conveying the insidious corruption of the collectivist society of Anthem, Ayn Rand uses dramatic and situational irony.

Within the pages of Ayn Rand’s novel, Anthem, a government which resembles a dictatorship is exhibited. Both the leaders and the society itself seek to control mans body and mind as they follow ideals similar to that of a communist party. The leaders and society in Anthem seek to control mans mind using tactics such as collectivism and suppression of the past to accomplish a tyrannical end.

“It is a sin to write this. 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… We have broken the laws” (17). Thus begins Anthem by Ayn Rand, a novella about a future collectivist society and a man named Equality 7-2521. Though the story takes place in the future, all technology that came after candles and glass has been taken away. The word “I” has ceased to exist in anyone’s vocabulary. Every person must agree on everything and feel like everyone else. To accomplish ‘cleansing’ the evils of mankind, society lead its people to believe that nothing can be done independently. The story is told through the eyes of Equality as he purposely defies the laws

In conclusion, in Anthem by Ayn Rand, Equality’s new society will have none of the rules of the old society. The rules were put in place to shun differences and keep everyone equal. Because Equality hated the old society, he encourages differences, and he was an outcast in the old society, he will not allow any of the rules to carry over into his new

There are various family backgrounds a child may come from. If they grow up in an extended family circle, in close relationship not only with their parents and siblings but also with their grandparents and cousins, they might feel more protected by the people who surround them and have more opportunities to develop socially through frequent interactions with their relatives. A bigger family tend to give moral values and education to the child that also supports their social and cognitive progress. However, coming from a smaller, nuclear family does not mean that the child is not provided with the same values, and vice versa a child can have negative experiences, e.g. feeling of being lost in a house crowded with their family members. Reconstructed or one-parent families also have the potential to work well if the child is able to accept the changes and see that e.g. their parents are happier separated or with their new partner. Still teaching staff has to give closer attention to those children coming from broken up families because if they are unhappy or cannot deal with the changed circumstances, their academic and social development will be affected negatively.

Anthem by Ayn Rand is a dystopian novel written in the 1930’s. The novel displays a society that confines the human mind and body. The rights humans are restricted to what the government believes is fit. The characters are ruled by collectivism and communist. Communism is the belief that the government should own everything. Collectivism is the belief of a superior group that controls society. Rand reveals the nature of the main character’s society and the values of the main character, Equality 7-2521 by writing this excerpt of the novel in the character’s perspective in an assertive tone and beginning with the rights and wrongs of their society.

Dictators throughout history have known to have bad reputations and personalities. Some say that dictators have heartless in their crimes and cruelty to humanity. Dictators get addicted to the power, money and respect. Money, power and respect are equally important to them. They will do whatever necessary to have it all. Idi Amin and Rafael Trujillo are two leaders we can compare in this situation. Rafael Trujillo was more merciful than Idi Amin.

The dystopian novella, Anthem, is set in an age in which every aspect of life is controlled by oppressive leaders. In this society, everyone was deemed equal to each other, meaning no new ideas were allowed and the past could not be discussed. Individuals are told they exist only for the sake of serving society and have no other purpose. Strict rules were put in place involving everyone’s daily lives, their partners, and even when they were allowed to smile. The goal of this controlling environment is to be completely free from conflict and maintain peace and order by giving citizens little freedom.

There are a lot of things to think about when you ponder why dictatorial leaders would force children to live apart from their families. Some of the biggest questions that form in my head are, “Do the parents agree to this?” and, “Why would children not be allowed to grow up with their families?” I know that I would not want to live like that. I do have theories, though, for why leaders would enforce this type of law.

Set in a dystopian society in the future, the novella Anthem written by Ayn Rand is all about being a collective society which doesn’t believe in individualism. Ayn Rand constructs a society in which individualism is a transgression. The government enforces the idea of collectivism to the society. They believe that in the human race each person is not single. The protagonist, Equality 7-2521 wants to be an independent person. He wants to be free. As stated in the novel, “To be free, a man must be free of his brothers.” This statement means that in order to be successful, he has to be his own person. As the novel goes on Equality 7-2521 learns to be an independent man and frees himself from the society which forces collectivism.

Where do children in totalitarian states live? Right from birth, children are taken from their parents and live in places controlled by the state. They never meet their parents and the state takes over teaching the children everything they think is important for their lives. In Ayn Rand’s Anthem, children never live with their parents and never know who they are. Right from birth, they are taken to the House of Infants and from there they live in homes their entire life. Dictatorial leaders enforce this living arrangement in these sorts of societies. In totalitarian societies, dictatorial leaders force children to live apart from their families to gain complete control of their lives without any outside influences.

No “I” and no “you”, just “we.” How could we live in a world like that? Ayn Rand’s book shows a twisted and different form of collectivism. Everyone is told what they have to do for the rest of their future. Children are not even allowed to know who their parents are and are never given the chance to meet them. Although, only one shines in the society that no one else may see until now. Equality finds it difficult to find individualism in his life and in the rules of his society. Equality eventually finds individualism in escaping, to a haven of his own, from his odd society. Equality can then find peace with himself and can live in a more individualistic life in his newfound house with “The Golden One” in the forbidden and

To begin, Ayn Rand shows the negative side of collectivism with the creation of the main character Equality 7-2521. Rand’s strong beliefs had her create a whole character that is against the large idea of collectivism. In Anthem, it starts off by saying, “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” (Rand 17). Collectivism portrays the idea of being an individual as a sin. Because Rand is being derogatory, she makes collectivism seem wrong. The character is breaking the rules that he grew up learning and being forced to obey. Throughout the book, Equality 7-2521 continues to take his own path and become an individual against collectivism. Rand explains in the story Anthem, “This is a great sin, to be born with a head which is too quick. It is not good to be different from our brothers, but it is evil to be superior to them” (Rand 21). The word “evil” is often associated with demons and the devil, so Rand's use of that word sets the tone of negativity. Collectivism makes the people feel guilty for being born with the ability to learn and comprehend schooling at a faster rate than others. This dystopian world is warped; instead of being praised and acknowledged for being advanced, they have to keep it to themselves and pretend to be normal when they aren't.

As Lyndon Baines Johnson says, “The family is the corner stone of our society. More than any other force it shapes the attitude, the hopes, the ambitions, and the values of the child. And when the family collapses it is the children that are usually damaged. When it happens on a massive scale the community itself is crippled. So, unless we work to strengthen the family, to create conditions under which most parents will stay together, all the rest — schools, playgrounds, and public assistance, and private concern — will never be enough” (Danes). He believed that family is the base of the society. The way that family is set up affects children in all ways. Family structure is very important and that no matter what we do,

In a research conducted by Roberts and Blanton, they found out that the number of families in the U.S. having only child are getting higher compared to the past generations having many children. And they also discovered that this widely statistical change, draws many adversely thoughts and speculations about being an only child or having an only child through the research of Polit and Falbo (125). The main judgement is being isolated because of not having any companions at home with their age, like having siblings that they can relate to their lives. Some other negative things are about their personalities and characteristics, such as being a spoiled, selfish, aggressive, bossy, etc. and the list goes on. However, Hawke and Knoxs state in their research that there were ninety-eight percent of the surveys concluded that being an only child is a benefit. Furthermore, some of the only children commented that, “My life was more private than if I had siblings – I had my own room” and “I got most of the things that I wanted like band instruments and folks took me with them to Europe” (215). Aside from the advantages that every only children gets, the parents is also in favor of this because they only have one child to support and that will make them to spend less. Hereby, this stereotypical myths of people about being an only child are widely unreasonable due to the fact that many only children’s lives will be in good hands because the child 's needs will be provided instantly as