Essay On Censorship In America

A complicated word isn't it, ‘censorship’. It comes from the Latin word ‘censere’ which means to give as one's opinion, something nonexistent in an Anthem society. Like many things, a world without censorship can be scary, but a world with too much of it, is a world with no meaning. Look at Anthem, the people who live in that society have no meaning, no life, no importance. Although many people can't imagine comparing the United States to an Anthem society, I believe the United States is an Anthem society because America has huge amounts of censorship when it comes to the press. The Anthem society is completely collectivist society where everyone works for the group. Their mantra, “We are one in all and all in one. There are no men, but only the great WE. One, indivisible and forever” (Rand 19) clearly shows this sentiment of the group coming before the individual. Because of this mindset set by society, almost everything people say or do is censored. For example, the biggest word that is censored is the word ‘I’. Until the end, the whole book is written in the ‘we’ perspective even though the narrator is only referring to himself, which is one person. This is because, the word ‘I’ is banned from being spoken because it references too much …show more content…
As much as I hate to say this, I do truly believe there is a huge issue of censorship in the United States, and I hope that like in Anthem, we can find a way to combat it to have a freer society. Ellen Hopkins once said “A word to the unwise.Torch every book. Char every page. Burn every word to ash. Ideas are incombustible. And therein lies your real fear.“ I think this quote truly embodies the spirit and mindset of Prometheus at the end of Anthem as he reflects on his journey. I hope that one day it's not just the majority that embodies this spirit and mindset, but the entire population of the United