Ayn Rand considers morality a matter of principle, rather than divine revelation or subject desire. Howard Roark, the protagonist of The Fountainhead, is the only character who faithfully and consistently observed his own fundamental and guiding principles, despite the fact that the whole of collectivist society deemed him and his actions entirely evil—especially in regard to dynamiting Cortlandt Holmes. Roark’s main argument for his actions is stated in the courtroom; however, his whole life is his response and justification for the rectitude of any and all of his actions. Roark’s principles are not only rational, but also moral (as one cannot exist without the other): he does not condone the infringement upon the rights of other …show more content…
After the case of Cortlandt Holmes, he acts upon his own words by erecting his building as he designed it through a private owner—no strings of poverty attached to the low rent. Roark told Keating that providing low cost housing was a worthy undertaking, but not at the expense of other men: in this instance, the middle class forced into more expensive (yet more vile) housing due to larger income. “Nobody can afford a modern apartment—except the very rich and the paupers.” Rather than merely concentrating on the “less fortunate” and attempting to aid them specifically, Roark supports genuine equal opportunity, intent upon allowing anyone, regardless of income, to rent at his apartment. Rand maintains that the government’s only natural purpose is to protect the rights of the individual. Roark had his own claims to Cortlandt: by his own principles and standards, by intellectual property rights, and the simple fact it would not have existed were it not for his abilities. “It is said that I have destroyed the home of the destitute. It is forgotten that but for me the destitute could not have had this particular home.” He defined civilization as the process of subordinating society to the moral law of individual rights, and government of the legal implementation of those rights and that law. Since Roark did not infringe upon the life or freedom of any other individual, had intellectual
Although Equality 7-2521 acknowledges that his great re-discovery of electricity will benefit all of mankind, that wasn’t his primary motivation for making it. In Chapter V, Equality says, “We can give our brothers a new light, cleaner and brighter, than any they have ever known.” (60). He recognizes that this discovery will completely alter the way his society is set up, presumable for the better. But, as he states later in Chapter VII: “We have lied to ourselves. We have not built this box for the good of our brothers. We built it for its own sake.” (76). Thus, Equality’s primary motivation for conducting his experiments is not to help others, but to help himself. It’s his own curiosity to find the extent of his abilities and power that drives
Sharing is caring. This we are taught from a very young age, that if we do not share with our peers then we do not care about them and, therefore, are despicable human beings. However, members of modern western society are not the only ones taught this, as it is also ingrained in the heads of Anthem society members. “All things on Earth belong to all men” (p.46). I high key want to die
Ayn Rand, in her 1938 novella “Anthem”, depicts a young man living in a future in which people have lost all knowledge of individualism. Rand creates an underlying warning throughout to those who believe that collectivist societies can ever be successful. She believes that losing sight of individuality will lead to the destruction of all progress. Through a tone of collectivism without individualism, Rand attempts to place emphasis on her beliefs.
The definition of individuality states a total character peculiar to and distinguishing an individual from others. In a society a person can chose to take the easy way out by following the crowd or, do the hard thing and be an individual and embrace the characteristics that make you different from others. Being an individual and standing out from the crowd might be hard at first but, it can lead to a better society for everyone. In Anthem, by Ayn Rand, the theme of the book is individuality outweighs the expectations of society. This theme is clearly shown throughout the book through the protagonist's internal conflict, the introduction to conflict and the climax. In the beginning of the story Equality 7-2521 introduces himself and he says, “Our name is Equality 7-2521, as it is written
First of all, Ayn Rand developed a system of philosophical objectivism and therefore she, sought to make real her
Anthem written by Ayn Rand is a novella about Equality 7-2521 and the dystopian society he lives in. Everything is decided by a World Council and doing anything that makes you stand out is classified as crime, your individuality is seen as a great evil. It is a warning of how putting others in front of yourself is a great evil. So, after all 105 pages, how good was Anthem exactly?
The protagonist, Equality 7-252, finds himself in a collectivist state where this type of government is based on the premise that all people live and work for the benefit and the good of everyone else. The leaders, also known as the World Council, is the group that makes decisions for the larger lower class as separated by intelligence or any other valuable trait. These decisions include individual’s names, their occupations, restricting their vocabulary and their education. The establishment of this government resulted in giving up personal rights and the sense of self. In this collectivist state, people are going to tell someone what to do, think and act and take away their free will. They choose and decide what they want and when they want it. A big part of individualism is to question anything or anyone, such as the government but in this collective state, fear is one of the most emphasized themes in the book that Rand shows of many people going along with society’s ideals simply because they are too afraid to stand up for anything else. Individualism gives people the power to voice their opinion, to say what they want and what they need. The most important part of the government is to establish laws based on peoples opinions and their needs/wants. Rather than having these laws be decided by the government and for the goal of equality they want to achieve. This is supported based of Excerpts from John Locke. Locke claims that the most important part of the government is the legislative power because the role of the legislative power is to establish laws that apply to everyone equally and for the good of the people. The purpose of an established government is to care for the good of its people, but the government in Anthem precludes people from their rights. Everyone should have a place or part in the government because no decisions are made
Equality’s views on morality differ from Equality’s views at the end of the story. In 1938, Ayn Rand’s novel Anthem was published. A novel of which focused on the philosophy that man is a heroic being with his own happiness as the moral purpose of his life. In Anthem, we follow the character Equality who starts the story as just another member of the collective who can only think and act for the collective. Equality is stripped of individuality and is assigned his name from birth, represented by an iron band around his wrist. This sets up the conflict Equality has with himself as he becomes more curious with his surroundings eventually finding a hidden hole where he is free to indulge his curiosity by experimenting with tools he is not allowed
To rule, a ruler needs control. It is the cornerstone of any society with a leader. The society Ayn Rand creates in Anthem is no exception. In Anthem, the rules in the society depicted by Rand exist for control, and were initially created for equality but spiraled out of control into a world built on collectivism and backward teachings. The society Prometheus, or Equality, envisions in the final chapters of the novella would never have any of the rules in his past society, as he realizes through his journey that they are evil and damaging.
Anthem overall was a good book it caught my attention. In Anthem the younger people are the ones that are curious about everything that was the past that is hidden and everything that isn't or hasn't yet been discovered. The maze Runner is a good relation to anthem because of the kids being the ones to explore and want to know about everything. Every adult i've ever met has always tried to tell me what to do. The reason young people are attracted to dystopian style books is because they feel that they know more than the adults think they do.
In this book review, I am reviewing “Anthem,” by Ayn Rand. This short novel was published in 1938. This book, I think was a pretty good book. I actually liked this short novel considering I can’t remember all the stuff that happened in this book, but it was a good short novel. I don’t like reading a lot but I actually liked reading this book. I would recommend for anyone to read this short novel, it want take you long to read it. “Anthem,” is a dystopian fiction novel.
"There are two sides to every issue: one side is right and the other is wrong, but the middle is always evil," Ayn Rand, author of Anthem, once said. This being said, being in the middle of self rights and the majority vote would never work for it is evil. It is only evil because of the way nothing can progress and after all progress is the main part of a society. Choosing a side is the first step to a better society, but more importantly its the side you choose to follow. Objectivism is the route one should pursue to find a better tomorrow.
When Ayn Rand wrote The Fountainhead, she intended to keep the syntax simple so readers could get an understanding of Objectivism and individualism. We can clearly see that the protagonist, Howard Roark, is portrayed as an objectivist and individualist, who also rejects the worst of social standards, while Lois Cook is seen as a radical, who objects the best of social standards.
The Fountainhead depicts Howard Roark as an ideal man who struggles to become a unique and unadorned architect in a society where he is doomed to follow in other people’s footsteps and compromise his beliefs. The Fountainhead is the story of Roark’s battle to maintain his integrity while he discards convention. Ayn Rand, the author of the novel The Fountainhead, was born in Russia in 1905 and lived in a culture that practiced communism, socialism, and collectivization. Naturally, recurring themes in her novels include individualism, reason, and uprightness. Years after its original publication in 1943, Rand added an introduction to newer versions of the book. In it, she explained she wrote The Fountainhead in order to describe Howard Roark,
This essay will discuss the life and works of Ayn Rand. The woman who would become Ayn Rand was born Alice Rosenbaum on February 2, 1905. (Branden, Barbara pg.3 1986). She was born during the eleventh year of Nicholas II's reign in Russia.(Baker pg.1 1987). Rand's birth was just before a revolution in Russia, however this revolution was put down by her first year.(Branden, Barbara pg.3 1986).