...to their society; inevitably, however, Equality recognizes the impossibility of his situation as the council berates him and denounces his invention, claiming that since it had not been devised in cooperation with his brothers, it was a sinful abomination that needed to be destroyed. Utilizing her characters as a means for presenting her ideas about morality, Ayn Rand’s novella Anthem illustrates a fundamental truth about the necessity of an objective moral framework within a society. Similarly, in her essay How Does One Live a Rational Life in an Irrational Society?, Rand poses her ideology that morality is objective and an absolute essential to a functional society. In both her essay and in Anthem, Rand explores the necessity for an objective morality in society, blah blah blah, and blah blah blah implications of a society....
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...A collectivist society where individuality is punishable by death and men are viewed as “all in one and one in all… indivisible and forever”; herein lies the world of Anthem, an atypical yet discomforting dystopian world. Like most dystopias, the government is oppressive and tyrannical, hiding behind a false veil of fairness and equality. Different is the retrogressive development of technology, which can be described as primitive at best. The stark contrast between this portrayal and portrayals in other dystopias highlights the impact individualism has on the progression of technology in society. Ayn Rand’s Anthem implies that invention inherently encourages the development of the individual and technology thrives when independent thought...
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...Throughout Ayn Rand’s novel Anthem, we see Equality grow as an individual and find the true meaning of freedom. In chapter eight, when he remembers he is the damned he laughs because he realizes he is the happy one and that his civilization is actually the one damned. The truth is he feels like he is the opposite of damned, he is blessed. It’s ironic how after Equality leaves the city he’s happier and feels more alive than ever before. He is an outcast but he’s the only one who went against the Council and stood up for himself. When he was in the city he felt like he was he was a tool of the Council’s use. Now he finally is able to see the “beauty of the earth” (Rand 94). While in the forest, Equality doesn’t feel like he’s damned, but figures out what being free is like and how there is no greater treasure. He has the gift of intelligence, to know the evil of collectivism. It ruins him every day, but with his power...
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...-Conformity and Rebellion: In my analysis of Henry David Thoreau’s “Civil Disobedience” I would tend agree that people are divided based on their roles and functions in society. This division of people may be outside of an individual’s or group of people’s control. This division of people may be driven by socioeconomic, geographic, political, ideological or technological reasons. There may be individuals in power that will dictate where classes of people should live and work. The divisions of people into classes can be seen in both the real world and fictional writings. There may be divisions of classes within the same group of people based on power and influence in that group. Some of these individuals in these groups may also consist of those rare individuals with a conscience, that Thoreau speaks of, who can influence change or incite a rebellion. If the actions of these rare individuals incites a revolution and takes down those individuals currently in power then I would agree they would be considered an enemy of the state. People can also be divided based on their roles and functions in society without force or coercion. Their culture or customs of a society may dictate roles and functions. An individual may be born into this society with fixed expectations of their roles or functions. This agreement can be the seen in the case of Changez, in the Reluctant Fundamentalist. Changez was born into a caste system where his family held some form of power and influence based...
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