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Equality 7-2521 Research Paper

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Equality 7-2521: A Lone Scholar Living in a Society of Street Sweepers
Robert Green Ingersoll, a lawyer, Civil War veteran, and political leader, once said that "It is a blessed thing that in every age some one had had the individuality enough and courage enough to stand by his own convictions." In Ayn Rand's novel Anthem, Equality 7-2521 represents this salient being. Equality has never been destined to be a street sweeper, instead, it is a sinister motive of the Council that determines his position. This is proven by several aspects throughout the book, encompassing the idea that Equality has been set aside from society from a young age, Equality is an individual in a communistic society, and that the Council has had unjust determinations …show more content…

Equality is often locked in the cellar as a child, more so than the other children, for being taller and more intelligent than his teachers. In Anthem's society, "It is not good to be different from [your] brothers, but it is evil to be superior to them" (Rand 21). This saying, told to Equality multiple times by his teachers for excelling in his lessons, indicates that Equality is “evil,” for being intelligent. He often understands the subject matter of his lectures before the teachers have even completed the curriculum. Equality himself states that "No single one can possess greater wisdom than the many Scholars who are elected by all men for their wisdom. Yet [I] can. [I] do" (54). Equality is one of the smartest mortals in his society, and he even goes so far as to say that he is more intellectual than members of the Home of the Scholars. Equality's treatment by his teachers justifies that his occupation as a street sweeper was a sinister motive because his intelligence could lead to him surpassing the influence of the Council, if citizens decide to depend upon the man bringing them new innovations in science and

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