Moral Judgment In Ayn Rand's Anthem

“I am neither foe nor friend to my brothers, but such as each of them shall deserve of me” (Rand 36). This excerpt provides insight to Equality’s personal view on the ethics surrounding morality. Morality is a complex and unique concept of the perceived difference between right and wrong. Within each environment and each new set of standards comes different ideas of morality, whether they are forced by a society or thought of individually as guiding principles for oneself. Ayn Rand’s Anthem presents an ideological war between Equality’s society and Prometheus’s views: a war fought between collectivism and individualism. Within the idea of collectivism and the contrasting belief in individualism, one finds different concepts of morality.

The novel of Anthem, written by Ayn Rand, contributes to controversial subjects in society that are still relevant today. Some issues addressed by Rand in her novel include: equality, social hierarchy, individuality, and government. Throughout the duration of reading Anthem the issues in which Rand makes relevant are not obvious, but more so discussed through conflicts and situations that the main character, Equality 7-2521, encounters. Although many of the altercations that present social issues are provided by either other characters singlehandedly or by a group of the characters in alliance, some of the main issues that arise in this novel are presented within the main character himself.

“We cannot resist it. It whispers to us that there are great things on this earth of ours, and that we must know them. We ask, why we must know, but it has no answer to give us.” (Rand 24) he then goes on talking about how he loves “the Science of Things” (Rand 23) and how he could ask questions in the House of Scholars, “for they do not forbid questions.” (Rand 23) However, at the near end of Anthem, Equality states that the Scholars are “blind” and are being “cowardice” (Rand 19) even though he had once looked up to these same Scholars when growing up, “We strive to be like all our brother men, for all men must be alike.” (Rand

Ceaseless collectivism is not something that can be forced upon a community. Ayn Rand’s novel Anthem conveys this through the writings of Equality 7-2125, a man willing to stand up to the collectivism of the society he is confined to. Anthem not only shows how dull and lifeless a society can be with a lack of individuality in its people, but also reveals how one person can significantly impact a community. This novel displays the importance of individualism through Equality’s thoughts and actions. This includes when he reinvents electricity in the tunnel, falls in love with Liberty, and when he completely separates himself from society.

Equality contemplates, “I wonder, for it is hard for me to conceive how men who knew the word “I”, could give it up and not know what they lost” (103). This quote narrates the discovery of one of the most essential words used to identify as a single, original person, I. Equality realizes the tragedy of the loss that his previous society created before his lifetime and really ponders why and how this could happen in a very separate world. Equality readies himself to be an individual person as a result of feeling strongly against the beliefs of his previous society. Equality excitedly states, “We made a fire, we cooked the bird, and we ate it, and no meal had ever tasted better to us. And we thought suddenly that there was a great satisfaction to be found in the food which we need and obtain by our own hand” (79). In the past, Equality had never done anything to express his originality because of the law stating otherwise, so when given the opportunity to finally understand his own strengths and weaknesses, he takes it. He disregards the law and excitedly grasps the concept that he isn’t supposed to be a follower like his peers were, he was meant to be a leader. Disagreeing with the law was a main point of Rand’s novella, promoting personal

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

no will in us and no power to resist it” (Rand 18). Equality has no desire to stop his transgressions because

In the book Anthem by Ayn Rand the main character, Equality, lives in a collectivist society, but he leaves because he does not agree with these values. Anthem is a prime example of the hero's journey because the novel is very similar to what criteria the hero's journey contains. This essay consists of how the Equality experiences the Apotheosis, Master of Two Worlds, and the Ultimate Boon.

The fiction novel Anthem by Ayn Rand, begins as equality takes a journey to individualism. He begins by writing how wrong he is to be writing what he is, how much of a sin it is. To be thinking as his own, and as an “I”. Ayn Rand is from Russia, which is a communist society. As Rand was growing up in this time frame, she had made the time to give herself an education which was frowned upon as she was a woman. She was not given a sense of “I” it was the normal thing for women to stand back and watch. To continue deeper into the book, Equality's eventual assessment of his writing on his own, changed from being a sin to being and individual activity, from the beginning to the end of the book.

When Equality 7-2521 begins the novel by saying, “It is a sin to write this.” he has a different moral assessment of writing than at the end of the novel. Throughout Anthem, Equality’s actions affect how he views his society and the people around him. By the end of the story, Equality begins to realize that the government and society that he lives in might not be so perfect, and it might not be a sin to write. Equality’s eventual moral assessments of his sins are correct and are supported by; his growth throughout the story, the themes of independence developed in the novel and Ayn Rand’s concepts concerning communism. These are the three ideas that will be developed and explained in this paper.

After that first step is taken, people will begin to realize the merits of their situations and therefore, begin to fight as well. This theme is evident throughout the book as the motif of individuality is so prevalent but it only really becomes clear once the main character begins to act on his beliefs. Character development also takes many large strides in this section. Equality’s actions during his meeting with the Council of Scholars were rash and perhaps even radical. Now however, we begin to see his logic in his actions. This all shows the fact that he is beginning to think for himself more than ever and is therefore becoming an individual rather than a monotonous member of the collective. This all comes back to the major conflict of the book: Equalities search for a life in which he can exhibit nonconformity and live in any way he chooses. The conflict is fully resolved after Equality and Liberty find a small house hidden from the rest of society which is from the “Unmentionable times”, a time period similar to our own which the World Council attempts to hide as best they can because it can be implied that they fear to lose power over this society. In the final few chapters of the book, Equality learns, through reading classical texts of the word ‘I’. Thus, his journey for individualism and nonconformity is completed and his conflict is resolved. Rand writes:

“My happiness is not the means to any end. It is the end. It is its own goal. It is its own purpose” (Rand, 95). Anthem is written by American author Ayn Rand about Equality 7-2521 on his quest for happiness. The novel is set in an unspecified time and place in the future. Years after human civilization has gone through a deconstruction in which all knowledge was lost and a new society established with no concept of the individual. “The novel describes the efforts of the main character, Equality 7-2521, to reestablish a sense of personal identity and restore the knowledge of the past by objective scientific inquiry. In doing so, he must face many dangers and privations” (Anthem). Anthem is a dairy of the Equality

Societies are different in many ways. The society that Anthem is based around is a collectivist society, in this society everyone is treated equal. Equality 7-2521 didn’t care for this type of society organization. He discovered a tunnel that had been left from the unmentionable times, and they were instructed to have no affiliation with the unmentionable times. While in this tunnel he made some gave discoveries, one of these discoveries was electricity. He later presented this finding to the scholars, they didn’t not appreciate his assertiveness with his new finding, so he had to leave fearing his life. He ran into the uncharted forest and eventually found a house from the unmentionable times.

Imagine living in a world where being different was a crime, and thinking will send you to jail. This is the society that the book Anthem is written in. Equality 7-2521 the main character and the narrator is faced with this every day. Equality’s negative assessment of himself was what is expected of him, but he should have the right to be unique.

Anthem Chapters 1-3 Theme Outline Topic Choice: Equality Theme Statement: Ann Rand used equality in her book, Anthem, to show that being the same may seem nice, but it’ll cost us our identity. III. Character-