Collectivism In Ayn Rand's Anthem

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

This novel displays exactly what Ayn Rand’s theory of Objectivism does not support in order to expose the weaknesses of her opponents ways and express the importance of self improvement. She puts forth for the reader the faults of a collective minded society as the leaders and society within Anthem attempt to control mans body and mind. Towards the close of the novel, as Equality 7-2521 discovers the sacred word he also comes to understand the perks of self improvement and striving to advance as an individual. The leaders and society attempt to accomplish the tyrannical end to their dictatorship through their control of mans body and mind by hiding the past and maintaining a collective

Compare and contrast the ways Cisneros and Piercy feel about names in general and their own names in the Vignette “My Name” and the poem “’If I had been called Sabrina or Ann,’ she said.” Comment on the language and language techniques used.

Culture is an invisible bond that connects people together. The literature, art, religion, food, and language of a community represent its culture. Navigating between cultures is not something impossible to do, but there are a lot of limitations and sacrifices to make in order to blend in with other cultures. To respond about the cultural navigation issues and benefits, Manuel Munoz, the author of “Leave your Name at the Border”, talks about the importance of the non-Americans’ names, especially Mexican Americans’ names, to their identities. Munoz wants readers (Americans) to give everyone the respect they deserved as human beings, starting with accepting and using people’s real names. However, Andrew Marantz, the author of “My Summer at the

Throughout the story the protagonist is left nameless. This provides the reader with another question of identity. Without a name to attach to the character, we are left without an identity.

By simply referring to the four main characters by their appellation—the mother, the son, the daughter, and the father— it is shown that this isn’t the story of only one family; this is the story of numerous families that were uprooted and torn apart during this period of Japanese internment and discrimination. These four nameless characters can be any Japanese person in the United States and their experiences can be be extended to all Japanese Americans at that time. Meanwhile, the namelessness of the characters also conveys the loss of their identities. One Japanese American who was arrested as a spy said, “We were just numbers to them, mere slaves to the Emperor. We didn't even have names. I was 326” (Otsuka 119). The Japanese lost the basic right to their own names, and consequently, they lost their identities. Knowing that their Japanese identities may them trouble, the children even attempt to change their identities. They said, “We would change our names to sound more like theirs. And if our mother called out to us on the street by our real names we would turn away and pretend not to know her” (Otsuka 114). In this way, it can be said that identity is encoded in a name. Much like the children, I attempted to

Equality 7-2521, is a youth who writes, as he spends time alone, violating laws of his society. As equality 7-2521 discovers more about the past, through experimentation, he begins to question his individual self. Libertarianism is respect of individuals’ liberty rights through minimal state intervention in citizens’ lives. The novel Anthem, by Ayn Rand, shows support of libertarianism by displaying the beauty of relationships, the importance of discoveries, and the significance of individualism.

Collectivism is a word unheard of to many, but it happens to be quite a common thing in many lives. Ayn Rands book, “Anthem”, illustrates how one should break away from the addictive sense of collectivism to then achieve their own individualism.

“We made it. We created it.We brought it forth from the night of the ages.We alone.” (38) In the dystopian novel called Anthem by Ayn Rand a boy named equality lives in a society in which individuality is inconceivable and he is driven by his curiosity to learn which eventually led him to individuality and solitude when he leaves his society. Ayn Rand use equality's experiments with electricity to show equality develope from group mentality to absurd individuality illustrating her point that individuality rules over groups and that everyone should be entirely and only individual.

This illustrates that the recurring theme of rebellion is being portrayed .Furthermore the theme of confinements is revealed within the novel of Anthem. For example when the society limits their citizens at an early age to a selectictive job . This shows that the citizens don’t get to think on their own but being confined into a certain house in their dystopian world. Similarly the Collective Society theme of Confinement can be revealed through the main characters . For instance when “Equality shows his discovery of light to the World Scholars they shoot him down verbally questioning why a Street Sweeper is creating evil inventions.This proves that in his collective society the theme of confinement is one of the factors that helps their leader keep them in check to make sure they won’t rebell in a large group against them. All this variety of themes shows that Rebellion , Individualism and Confinement is used throughout the novel to push the characters in their different plot concerning them.Last but not least how these theme also served as factors to keep their dystopian society

There comes a point in time in an individual’s life in which their name truly becomes a part of their identity. A name is more than just a title to differentiate people; it is a part of the person. In Lost Names: Scenes from a Korean Boyhood by Richard E. Kim, names play a major role on the character’s identities. The absence and importance of the names in the story make the story rich with detail and identity through something as simple as the name of a character. Names are a significant factor affecting the story and the characters throughout the novel Lost Names.

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.

At birth everyone is given a name by their parents. Your name is part of your identity and how you are addressed and recognized by the world. The different verities among the population created other names given to different races. These names are offensive, demeaning and are only used to refer to a person in a disrespectful manner. They can also cause a segregation among a nations people, these names are forced upon people weather they are rich or poor, old or young, male or female and are used to describe the same race of people. In the class reading "What 's in a Name? “by Henry Louis Gates he reminisces about a personal experience of his that he had with his father. In the story he describes his father was a hard worker and, because of this he was in high financial standings and, he was well respected and given privileges that at the time was rare for people of his race but he was still black and his name, his individual identity was not important instead he was given a racial identity, this is the only thing he was known as, this type of negative recognition is something many black Americans can relate to. One’s race is a predominant part of our identity and is what causes discrimination.

The meaning of names is a central focus of the novel, because names define people. Their worth and functions are summarized by the names. To some extent, the names also discourage originality. This occurs especially to

“He was a kind of nothing, titleless, /Till he had forged himself a name o’ the fire /Of burning Rome” (_______). In Shakepearse’s play, Coriolanus, having a name is strongly correlated to having an identity, thus if an individual does not have a name he or she is nothing. Coriolanus is a prominent Roman war hero who had a strongly developed sense of self in the beginning of the play. However, as the play progresses he falters and decides to become dangerously independent, not even wanting to accept the name given to him by his mother. He continually changes his name and identity throughout the play. Coriolanus rejects Rome’s societal norms and establishes his own virtues that he lives by. This method of thinking ultimately led to his banishment from Rome, which also pushed him into forging for himself a new name. I can relate to Coriolanus’ struggle to find a name for himself. I feel that the name given to me by my mother holds no identity in and of itself. Rather, it is the choices that I make in my own life that will determine what that name will come to represent.