Role Of Egoism In Ayn Rand's Anthem

Individuality is the quality or character of a particular person or thing that distinguishes them from others of the same kind, especially when strongly marked. It is what allows each being in the world to be their own person. Individuality is very important because without it the world would be bland and boring. What differs between each of the 7.125 billion people of our world is their individuality. People need to be different from one another in order for our society to function. Without individuality there would be no style trends, artwork, scientific theories, or advancement in society. All together, without individuality our world would be stuck in a backwards way of living or more specifically our world would be caught in a dark era. Free will is the power of acting without the constraint of necessity or fate or the ability to act at one's own discretion. Without free will no person in the world would be able to think for themselves. Our society would be con-formative and everything would be the same. No person in the world would be able to think differently from others, and therefore our world would be uninspired and mundane. Ego can be defined as a person's sense of self-esteem or self-importance. A person without an ego would feel they have no purpose in life. Without an ego humans would be indifferent, and they would not have a care in the world because they are not passionate about anything. Egos are what allow humans to not be afraid to question others and make decisions based on what they believe in. Without egos there would be no religions, theories, new ideas, inventions, or progress among humanity. A person with an ego is able to be bold and daring. Most of all a person with an ego is able to fail. If people were unable to accept failure, then our society today would not exist. Failure is what made people try new things, think differently, or move forward.

“We strive to be like all our brother men, for all men must be alike” (Rand 21). Although being divergent is a sin, transgression in Anthem society, Prometheus, the protagonist, defies against collectivism by standing out and becoming an outcast of himself in his society with self-assurance and eagerness. No one in Anthem society has individual identity by inspecting the inexistence of the word “I,” while Prometheus detects the Unspeakable Word, ego, exposing the readers to envisage the propitious prospect of the establishment of individualism.

Hesiod’s Theogony has transcended generations, delivering to vast audiences the traditional stories of the Greek gods as well as ancient Greek conceptions of the world. One particularly well known aspect of the Theogony, the section that tells the tale of Prometheus, is unique in that it has little intrinsic worth; its value is in its ability to enhance other stories and conceptions. Across the globe, people know well the story of the one who deceived Zeus and stole fire for man, but few recognize its role in Hesiod’s work as a whole. The story of Prometheus serves two primary purposes for Hesiod and his audience. First, it solidifies Zeus’s position as king of the gods, providing one of the first characterizations of his temperament, and

The last two lines of Invictus show how he feels that he can deal with his fate in life after he has preserved, "I am the master of my fate; I am the captain of my soul." This compares well to the use of I from the newly named Prometheus in one of the final chapters. Once Prometheus has found the word I he feels a sort of completeness with this new word open to him, "It was when I read the first of the books I found in my house that I saw the word "I." And when I understood this word, the book fell from my hands, and I wept, I who had never known tears. I wept in deliverance and in pity for all mankind. I understood the blessed thing which I had called my curse." Equality/Prometheus has found a way to deal with his pain and "curse" and that this has helped him develop as a person just as the character in Invictus delt with his

The first thing that a man has been given was his individuality. In Anthem, any concept of individuality is stripped away. In Anthem, only the word “we” is spoken when referring to oneself. Society has no acknowledgment of the word “I” because it refers to one person, instead of a brotherhood. Names are also stripped away. Names are usually replaced with

This quote relates to Individualism by that Individualism is being individual rather than to have collective interests. This quote shows that because the word “I” shows preference of Individualism. “I” means one Individual alone. The word “I” eliminates collectivism, that's why the word “I” was made “the unspeakable word”. This quote relates to Anthem by that the quote eliminates everything the society in Anthem believe

In the novel Anthem by Ayn Rand, the leading character , Equality 7-2521, lives in a collectivist society where the citizens have no control over their thoughts, actions, or lives. They are brainwashed to believe that the outcome of working together is righteousness, and working individually is evil. This is the basic standard in which this society lives in, therefore the citizens replace “I” with “We” in their thoughts, speaking, and writings. At the close of the book, Equality 7-2521 becomes an egoist, his new philosophy is that he needs to work for the good of himself, and based on the society he was raised in, the reader could agree with Equality’s new ideology about living life.

The world is fueled by people being individuals; but this can reach a point where all that is valued is oneself’s and their needs or desires. Once this point is reached, one may say that egoism has been defined in the person as egoism means an individual is only focused only on themselves. However, the focus on oneself does not fully define what an egoist is. A true definition of an egoist is a person not holding other values and using the concept of individuality for the better of themselves. Ayn Rand’s novella Anthem follows a character, Prometheus who knew nothing about ego and egoism, through his discovery of individuality. As Prometheus grew in his knowledge, he began to worship individuality as “holy”.

The society would be unsuccessful considering at any sign of similarity to his current society, he would attempt to change it. Individualism is the main priority of his society. Prometheus would attempt to be such an individual that he would overlook his brothers’ well being. Prometheus would also aim to assure it is known that he broke the society’s chain of collectivism by making himself and his loved ones superior to others. “We shall never leave this house," we said, "nor let it be taken from us. [...] This is your house, Golden One, and ours, and it belongs to no other men whatever as far as the earth may stretch. We shall not share it with others, as we share not our joy with them, nor our love, nor our hunger. So be it to the end of our days.” (Page 101) According to that quote, He would not care for anyone else's well being except for himself and

… the descriptive. A man whose belief in motivation regardless of the current obstacles that motivate their behavior … the normative. Are those types of men selfish, greedy, or perhaps over excessive in desire? This life of being an egoist is the life of Prometheus. Egoism is commonly associated with a negative connotation in which one has “too much” ego or self-pride. However, egoism and egotism are parallel and must be distinguished from one another. Egotism is a psychological overvaluation of one’s own importance and or importance. Simply put, egotism is arrogance. The book, For the New Intellectual by Ayn Rand contains a speech called The Soul of an Individualist. It says that “Men have been taught that the highest virtue is not to achieve, but to give. Yet one cannot give that which has not been created” (“The Soul of an Individualist” 2). Prometheus was indeed an egoist who was able to determine the power of self-worth in a chaotic and lifeless world. While being an egoist is associated and commonly misunderstood as egotism, being an egoist is not a malicious philosophy for it unveils individualism and is an essential aspect to the equilibrium of equality.

In a clash between the collectivist and individualist mindsets, the once Equality 7-2521 and now self named Prometheus had proclaimed that the word “ego” is a sacred word. It is essential to note that Prometheus himself is the true embodiment of an egoist as he worships the word and personifies it in the best way possible. While egoism may be viewed as an awful philosophy to live by, it is the path which true arbors of inspiration and creativity within a society follow.

Aeschylus was not the initial individual to display the chronicles of Prometheus, as another famous Greek poet in the form of Hesiod also conveyed of the condemnation of the fallen titan. Contrastingly, Hesiod wholly affirmed that Prometheus was the supercilious and prideful ignoramus that attempted to deceive the all-powerful Zeus, and even assisted the sinful mortals by bequeathing them fire. In verity, Hesiod’s interpretation of Prometheus is greatly distinctive when compared to Aeschylus’, for the former utilized crooked metis to endeavor to swindle an all-knowing god, whereas in Aeschylus’ construction, Prometheus was the savior of humanity, vilified as a result of the childlike tantrums of a bitter deity. Nevertheless, what both Works and Days and Prometheus

“I am done with the monster of “We,” the word of serfdom, of plunder, of misery, falsehood, and shame.” (Page 97). In relation to the novel Prometheus is reaching an enlightenment of his own beliefs. He realizes very early in the novella that he is very different from his brothers surrounding him. Prometheus states that he is no longer using the word “We” because it is a word of Collectivism rather than a word of Objectivism. The quote closely relates to the overall theme of Individualism by him saying that he no longer wishes to use the word we. Prometheus closely supports and strengthens the Individuality he has within

Anthem depicts a dystopian society in which every action should be dedicated to contributing to the society, and no actions should be committed for self. Prometheus has a curse that allows him to have selfish thoughts and commit transgressions frequently. Prometheus does not ruminate about his brothers or sisters in the way that is “normal” . The society that controls the city where Prometheus lives believes that normal is blindly following the society, no matter the request. They believe that they have conformity within the community and demand obedience to their morals and values. In the beginning of Anthem, Prometheus at first follows the rules of the society and presumes their morals are free of error, but consequently begins to realize that the society is depriving people the freedom of individuality.

Being an individual means to be free from society. Mark Twain portrays in his satiric novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, published in 1884 in the Antebellum South in Mississippi, 14 year old protagonist exposes the immorality of white society. The author’s purpose is to criticize the racism, slavery, and the hypocrisy that existed in the white “civilized” society in order to enact social change. Walt Whitman portrays in his free verse poem “ Song Of Myself” from the collection Leaves Of Grass published in 1855 that everyone in the universe has a purpose and that purpose is to be a part of nature. Whitman might express the idea to Twain that everyone in the pre-Civil War era is a part of nature and find solutions from it; therefore everyone has to value nature because it represents the higher power. James McPherson, author of “The Best Government on God’s Footstool,” claims in his historical account, What We Fought For, during the Civil War is that why did they fight. McPherson wrote similarly as Whitman in his writing, What We Fought For, that informed his readers that both sides fought for their own way of freedom and both had equal sacrifices. During a time of cultural turmoil the text made by Twain, Whitman and McPherson expresses ideas of individualism and society when an individual does not conform to society’s expectations during the 19th century.