Essays

Anthem Essay: A Scary Rough Draft

Has a lot of incomplete thoughts on the subject... yikes!

Throughout human history, there have been many types of societies and governments. From the medieval times of feudalism to modern democracy, a common thread has been woven through time: when a person goes against the ideals of society, government, or the general will, they tend to be rejected by the majority. During the 1930s, the lead up to WWII, there was buzz around the world for and against collective governments, such as Nazi Germany, fascist Italy, and Soviet Russia, in which the success of the group was placed above the individual. In 1938, author Ayn Rand published her book Anthem, which pitted a man with individualist ideas against his collectivist society. The pivotal moment of the story comes when Equality 7-2521 presents his creation (made on his own) to the Council of Scholars who, as mirrored in similar cases throughout history, reject him and his creation. The people of the Council of Scholars reject Equality because of his actions, which promote individualism and demote the sanctity of their entire collectivist world.

In the beginning, Equality struggles with his sin of individuality. He says repeatedly that he is guilty of the Transgression of Preference (he had a greater liking of things in a world where everything must be the same) into adulthood and through his vocation, as Street Sweeper he hopes he can atone for this (22). However, his curiosity of the world only grows and is amplified once he finds a tunnel from the Unmentionable Times, a time hundreds of years prior when the world was not united by the current collective society. It is in this tunnel that Equality learns and develops his creation.

His discovery and acquired knowledge from going into the tunnel resembles Plato's "Allegory of the Cave," in which people are trapped in a cave and all they know are shadows. One of these people is released and learns of things outside of the cave, and when they return they are rejected by those who had stayed. In the closed system of the cave, the enlightened person is deemed a fool (X). On the contrary, Equality goes into a dark place to advance his knowledge, and it is when he leaves that he is rejected by society. The rejection occurs because the enlightened person is making drastic alterations to his world. For the people in the cave, all they know are the shadows, and they believe that there is nothing more to explain them, as with the collective society. The people have been taught since birth to believe in their society and know nothing else.

As people develop, their mind is shaped just as much by their biology as by how they are raised. Under Erikson's stages of psychosocial development, the collective society present in Anthem completely removes a single person's autonomy during this critical period (age 1-3). Without this development, people gain self-doubt and begin to rely on others (Z). With this said, the people in this collective society have had their choices taken away from them since birth and so not having a choice is all that they know. Making choices for themselves and not for everyone is such a foreign idea that when a situation presents itself, they turn away. In the case of Equality, however, he has always been seen as different and has thought of the world differently than his brothers. Through his upbringing, he had been taught that "the Councils [government] are the voice of all justice, for they are the voice of all men," (22) and that anything that does not follow this way of thinking is evil. When Equality later decides to present his creation to the World Council of Scholars and face the consequences, "terror [had] struck the men of the Council... [They] huddled together, seeking the warmth of one another to give them courage" (70). It was stated previously that it had taken twenty men to invent the candle (one hundred years ago), so to the men of the Council, it may have also been inconceivable that a single man from the Home of the Street Sweepers had created a light with no flame. The whole basis of their society is that the group makes decisions that will better the group. It is even stated by one of the scholars that they had an idea of his own, presented it to his fellow scholars, and it was rejected as well (pg#). However, unlike Equality, who leaves and plans to reform society, the scholar accepts his rejection. He agrees with the thoughts of the many above the individual; he conforms to society's expectations of him.

Following the Council's immediate rejection, they describe the consequences for defying their society. Scholars suggest what may happen to Equality based on his rebellious nature.

Although the World Council of Scholars' reaction may be perceived as extreme, similar situations have been witnessed within other works of fiction as well as off the page and screen. Throughout religion and mythology, it has been depicted that those who rebel against the described authority have been rejected and hurt. In religion, one of the most prolific symbols of rebellion is the archangel Lucifer. The wayward angel has been recently portrayed on television programs such as Supernatural and Lucifer. Albeit each has their own take on his personality (from sadistic and murderous to devilishly charming and a police consultant) a majority of the plot for the season/show rests on his rebellion and expulsion from heaven as a consequence. Some major themes seen throughout Anthem are individuality, free will, and desire. Lucifer is the shining beacon for these ideas. Through his actions, Lucifer was rejected by his father and heaven (society) and so exercises his right on Earth to have free will and chase his desires, without the approval of someone else (1). This rejection is seen in Greek mythos as well. There is a story in which the Greek titan "Prometheus was chained to a rock and torn by vultures 一 because he had stolen the fire of the gods" (X). He had done this for the mortals and this angered the gods, it challenged their authority and their laws, so they punished him eternal torture. With this said, at the end of Anthem, Equality escapes the city he has grown up in and takes the name Prometheus. This reflects the original story with rebellion and rejection. In recorded history (the years directly succeeding the publication of the book), many collective governments took center stage in the world theater. Collective societies are most readily described as communist societies, however, it can also be used to describe totalitarian governments of the time. These type of governments included the communist Soviet Union as well as fascist countries (ie. fascist Italy and Nazi Germany), which are seen as complete opposites. A very simple way to view these societies is that, as a citizen of this country, a citizen will do what is best for the nation and will face consequences in any opposition to the accepted ideals. In Nazi Germany, those who aided Jewish people during the Holocaust received the death penalty for their actions. If someone housed an escaped Jew, if they transported them, if they fed them, they would be killed (2). In a way, Rand's character Equality was very realistic and is a prime example of human's predictive behavior: to go against authority that is seen to be wrong or to accept the consequences for their actions to do what they believe is right.

In a darker view of the society of Anthem, the Council of Scholars reject him for defying their societal norms, but, high members of their city government have been trying to control Equality, and many others with similar actions/problems, since childhood. Since the beginning, there have been instances in which the government has an eerie amount of insight into the lives of the people. As Equality describes the Home of the Infants and of the Students he was different physically and mentally, and that he had received more punishment for his actions than any other. When it came time to be assigned a job by the Council of Vocations, he became a Street Sweeper. Equality sees this as an opportunity to atone for his sin and promises to 'be good,' but as we later discover, he is not the only 'broken' person in the Home of the Street Sweepers. Equality describes a man who had drawn pictures, but had not been permitted to, and had also been sent to the Home of the Street Sweepers. He also describes many who appear to have medical afflictions: a man who has convulsions, one who cries in the middle of the day or night, and another who cries out in his sleep for help (29-47). Equality further states, "And as we all undress at night, in the dim light of the candles, our brothers are silent, for they dare not speak the thoughts of their minds" (47). It is possible that the Home of the Street Sweepers is the dumping ground for the predicted rejects of society, either from their inherent interests or their physical abilities (or lack thereof). They may be singled out as they are being monitored in the Home of the Infants and Students and are then sectioned off from others in the Home of the Street Sweepers. It had been stated in the beginning that those who did not better their world should not waste their time with their body (pg #). The World Councils may have Homes of the Street Sweepers set up around the globe to protect the interests of their collective society and so it can never be harmed. Although these people may be damaged (in terms of society), they are kept around, alive, because they have some use. It may also be a loophole to avoid outright murder which could demean the facade of the regime.