Equality 7-2521 Research Paper

To start off, Equality7-2521 is self-centered and is probably the most self-centered character in this book. This trait that he possesses sets him apart from mostly everyone in his society. From a very young age he recognized that he was different and he knew that unlike the others he wanted to learn and wanted his questions to be answered. He broke his very first rule at a young age. This rule was not to wish for a certain career because the council of vocations knows where you are needed amongst your brothers and sisters. (Chapter 1 page 22)

Throughout the novel, Equality 7-2521 grows farther and farther from the society in which he lived. With the discovery of the tunnel, he begins spending less time with his peers and more time alone making discoveries. After he is exiled, he grows even further apart by changing his name to Prometheus, who stole fire from the gods and gave it to humans, very similar to what Equality 7-2521 did to bring electricity the civilization. When Equality 7-2521 reads the books in the house and discovers the word “I”, he finally completely detaches himself from his past society, and begins living individually, not collectively with his brothers. From the beginning of the story Equality 7-2521 believes that he is evil and struggles to realize that he isn’t evil.

By the end of the story, Equality 7-2521 has changed his mind and become very critical of the leader of his society, denouncing them in moral terms. Do you think he is correct to do so?

During the novel, Equality 7-2521 has broken many of his societies rules. “It is a sin to right this,” (Rand Chapter 1 (??)) he writes these seven words in his diary. Earlier in the nove¬¬l, he wished for a job with the Council of Scholars. With this statement, Equality 7-2521 has committed what is known as the “Transgression of Preference”. He has done this by making a wish, something that is illegal and a sin in their society as all men are to be equal, and must accept their given fate. “We felt the cords of our neck grow tight as our head rose higher to look upon the faces of the Council, and we were happy. We knew we had been guilty, but now we had a way to atone for it.” (Rand, Chapter (??)) After learning his fate, Equality is satisfied. Although a position in the Council of Scholars would have been his ideal choice, he is both pleased and relived to hear that he was assigned a job as a Street Sweeper. This is primarily because of the guilt he felt for committing a sin, and making a wish for another

After Equality 7-2521 has realized this, he can’t take it anymore. “I am done with the monster of ‘We,’ the word of serfdom, of plunder, of misery, falsehood and shame.” (Rand 165) No more being controlled and forced to be someone who he isn't.

Ever heard of a society that does not have an individual? A society that is completely controlled? The book Anthem by Ayn Rand shows a society without an individual. An Anthem is an uplifting song that is identified by a certain body or cause. Ayn Rand wrote Anthem because she grew up in the Soviet Union, where it was a very communist society where people were supposed to be equal, but she saw that other people were higher above her

Anthem Essay Anthem, by Ayn Rand, depicts a futuristic society, an alleged utopia where everyone was created the same, no exceptions. Men in this novel are taught that it is a virtue to agree and be agreed with, when no one praises the creator, the egoist. The protagonist, Equality 7-2521, struggled his whole life to separate and free himself from collectivism, and develop an ego, obtaining victory at last. From a young age, Equality 7-2521 has differed from his ¨brothers¨. He was more knowledgeable when he was younger, more curious in his teenage years, and more futuristic in his twenties than his peers. First, Equality 7-2521 has been more knowledgeable than his brothers in school.

During his time in the community, Equality 7-2521 continues to trust the beliefs he has been taught as a child, which shapes most of his character in the beginning of the story. Afterward, when Equality is introduced to the things of the Unmentionable Times, he goes against the rules he’s been taught and sneaks out to study the information from that period. During this time, Equality 7-2521 starts to question the beliefs of the community and strives to learn beyond what he’s been taught. Near the end of the novella, Equality moves to an isolated place away from the society, where he can openly learn without the restriction and false belief he’s been taught from a

During his childhood, he was blessed with an individual spirit and the intelligence to understand the knowledge of the world. In spite of this, he reckoned his abilities as transgressions. He acknowledged that the way of life was that “Everything which comes from the many is good. Everything which comes from the one is evil” (Rand 85). Equality strives to accept the totalitarian society and consequently, he desperately struggles to disregard his abilities and subdue his desires. The grisly effects of society are portrayed immensely through the profound sense of guilt he suffers while committing the Sin of Preference. He continually recites that, “We are nothing. Mankind is all. By the grace of our brothers are we allowed our lives. We exist through, by, and for our brothers who are the State. Amen” (Rand 21). Gradually, his aspirations contradict with the dogma of society. He discovers that he finds more joy committing the Sin of Preference rather than restraining himself from happiness, which ultimately, allows him to elude his conscious premises. Equality’s belief that “[he] [has] torn [himself] from the truth which is [his] brother men… [he] knows [this], but [he] [does] not care” (Rand 76) marks his complete triumph over collectivism. Prior to his transformation, he belonged to a society in which the Sin of Preference revoked all rights for any desire, which ultimately disallowed citizens to think for freely. If permitted to do so, no

In Equality 7-2521’s society is it a sin to be by yourself at all, have opinions, or any sense of individuality. The word “I” does not exist in their society since the Great Rebirth. They refer to themselves as the “Great WE” at all times and live in the Dark Age, which consists of nothing from the “Unmentionable Times.” The main issue throughout the book is Equality 7-2521’s desire to be named a “Scholar” by the Council of Vocations, but instead, he gets assigned a street sweepers job for life. One day, Equality 7-2521 came across, what we see to be a subway, and makes it a spot that he can sneak out to experiment, write, and think by himself. Through his experiments, he discovers electricity, although he does not know the name, he decides

　　Equality 7-2521 conviction in the validity of his societies social values was crumbling. He reflects that “strange are the ways of evil… we are defying the will of our Councils” (Rand, 36) and that “never, not in the memory of the Ancient Ones’ Ancients, never have men done that which we are doing” (Rand, 37). He remarks with some astonishment that his activities caused him no feelings of guilt. He was shocked to realize that “in our heart there is the first peace we have known in twenty years” (Rand, 37).

The motif of Censorship drives the theme of self discovery by providing hidden knowledge that is available to be found. When Equality 7- 2521 discovers the tunnel in chapter one, it leads to him finding more about himself, even though it is illegal, as shown in the quote “all things that are not permitted by law are forbidden”. When Equality-2521 finds the tunnel, he discovers that he like to spend time alone, and write for his own benefit. The censorship of not allowing men to talk to women helped Equality 7-2521 to discover that he was happy, unlike all of his brothers who were in a state of perpetual fearfulness. This is shown in the quotes “There is fear hanging in the air… but we feel it no longer”. Another example of this is when Equality

Equality 7-2521, who decides to change his name to Prometheus in the final chapters of the novella, had his own vision of a perfect society. Upon discovering “I” while he is reading in the house, Equality 7-2521 becomes aware that he is the center of his own universe, and nobody has control over his actions now. He says, “I understood that centuries of chains and lashes will not kill the spirit of man nor the sense of truth within him” (Rand 58). It is clear that he would never include any of the rules that were present in his past society in his new and improved one. Equality 7-2521 completely let go of his old life and refused to be held back among the masses. Equality 7-2521’s curse that was always frowned upon finally was looked at in a positive way. He is unafraid and proud, finally discovering himself and becoming his own man.

Rules, some people follow them, others do not. Many people ask why these rules exist, or what they even mean. In Anthem, the rules in their society were created to assure that society would not have another catastrophe, like one before the Unmentionable Times, when the Evil Ones wreaked havoc on the World, destroying everything in their path. Many of these rules limit one's capabilities to think independently. Failure to follow these rules result in harsh punishment. One man, by the name of Equality 7-2521, has defied a numerous number of these laws. This man has made a monumental discovery that could advance mankind. Unfortunately, due to the World Councils stubbornness, he was rejected of his idea. In this moment, Equality finally realized

“We strive to be like all our brother men, for all men must be alike”(7). In Equality 7-2521's society, everyone must think and be just like everyone else. The society's commitment to Equality 7-2521 eventually means a confinement to sameness. If the individuals are not like everyone else, the Council Of Vocations threaten them by using brutal punishments for every law that is broken, they also threaten them from possibly being superior to others. It can be argued that it is moral to act in an individual’s own self-interest to find joy. Self-sacrifice is not an obligation. Collectivism states that people should exist for the co-operation for others and that the pursuance of individual happiness is not preachy. The dominance of mankind’s free will and the reason is most evident in the distant marble engraving in the Palace of the World Council, “We are one in all and all in one. There are no men but only the great WE, One, indivisible and forever” (6). "Dare not choose in your minds the work you would like to do when you leave the Home of the Students. You shall do that which the Council of Vocations shall prescribe for you" (20). Equality 7-2521 is proclaiming about what his teachers told him when he was a student. Evidently, in his society, no one is allowed to think or choose what they want to do with their own lives, or even to think about what they are capable enough of doing in their lives. These were