Summary Of Anthem By Ayn Rand

Improved Essays
“To be free, a man must be free of his brothers.” Equality 7-2521 said this at the end of the novella Anthem. Have you ever wondered what that meant? Well, it may have many many meanings, but I will tell you what it means to me. I believe that this is a very good quote for Equality’s society, as well as our society today.

First, let's tare that quote apart, “to be free,” what is freedom? Being able to do what you want? Or is it knowing you can do anything, with no limits? To be free means that you have no limits to what you can do. Equality has always been different from his brothers, so in a way he has always had a sort of freedom. Even though he was always scorned for his constant questioning of the society. He also had a taste of freedom one other time, when he found the tunnel. He was free to do what he wished for those short hours he was able to get away. Even though he didn't know it, he had many periods of freedom.
…show more content…
To me this means that you can't live your life making the same exact decisions as other people make. You have to go your own way. You have to be an individual, and you have to act different than everyone else. That also means that you shouldn’t conform to society. When Equality was in his hidden tunnel, he was free from his brothers, and at those times, we could see his mind slowly start to become his own, separating himself from his brothers. When that happened we could also see his mind wander, and he would experiment his curiosity. For example, when he was down there he decided to dissect a frog. Then when he found the power of the sky, or as we call it,

Related Documents

  • Decent Essays

    Equality 7-2521 Quotes

    • 232 Words
    • 1 Pages

    “To be free, a man must be free of his brothers” this quote exemplifies the theme of Anthem pretty well i’d say. In the novella “Anthem” all of the brother are seen as equal and are supposed to be the same. They are not supposed to be any superior that any one of their brothers, until Equality 7-2521 discovers more. Despite in this community that all of the brothers are supposed to be equal Equality 7-2521 has always been seen to be different that his brothers.…

    • 232 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    For Equality 7-2521 to have freed himself from collectivism, he must overcome many obstacles. Anthem is a dystopia about a person named Equality 7-2521 who lives in a place where “I” is gone and “we” has taken over. The thought of one is punishable by death in their world. While the passage “The Soul of an Individual” talks about how people fear change and act against it. In the book Equality had struggled to win, but had done so at the end.…

    • 711 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    When Equality sees Liberty, he is immediately attracted to her,and her to him as well. When Equality works, he sees her. They talk some but not much because it is forbidden. This also makes him ”the damned”, because it is against the…

    • 466 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In the novel Anthem, written by Ayn Rand, Equality 7-2521 is trying to escape the means of collectivism, which the author writes, "Collectivism holds that the individual has no right, that his right and work belong to the group (to society, to the tribe, the state, the nation) and that the group may sacrifice him at its own whim to its own interests"(Ayn Rand). Equality 7-2521's anthem is his strong personality, and individualism, much like: And, you know, being able to wear the Stars and Stripes, when you step up on one of the blocks or, you know, when you step off an airplane or when you hear the national anthem play, you know, it's one of the greatest feelings in the world because you know that they are home supporting you and watching you…

    • 833 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In equalities world he cannot ask any questions or do anything without their government knowing. He wants more people to know of the world outside of theirs that is why when equality found his girlfriend Liberty, he showed her everything he knows and everything he has created like the light bulb. In his experiments he has tried secretly without anyone finding out what he has been doing this whole time. When he is doing his experiments he does not want anyone to know until he found the girl that he fell in love with. The golden one shows him more than anything that he needs to believe and do everything for himself.…

    • 608 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    The novel Anthem by Ayn Rand portrays what happens when the government restricts the rights of the people and how they will react. This can be seen throughout history and the world, for example, the Soviet Union, Bolsheviks revolution, Nazi Germany, communist china, and communist Vietnam. These are just some of the countless examples of some governments that tried and failed to take away the rights of the people and attempts to control them. The author attempts to show the reader what she experienced growing up with the novel. She was raised in the Soviet Union during the Bolsheviks Revolution; she experienced the horrors of communism and saw how people reacted to it.…

    • 1525 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    His discovery of the word “I,” as well as his new view of the world, helped him realize that his choices were not all considered a sin despite what his society informed him. Between the beginning and end of the novel, Equality had different opinions as to whether or not his writing was a sin. By the end, Equality understood that it was not a transgression to write about one’s personal opinions or events in one’s life. His understanding that his “sin” was not actually a sin was correct because the society he grew up in was morally wrong and he was an individual who had his own thought process, separate from that of his…

    • 886 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Anthem Literary Analysis

    • 418 Words
    • 2 Pages

    However, morally he knew these rules were not fair, and opted to flee in search for freedom. In conclusion, even though Equality was faced with a plethora of dehumanizing practices from the government of this dystopian society, he persevered through. Rather than complying, he made the decision to break the laws. As Martin Luther King once said, “...an unjust law is no law at all.”…

    • 418 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The quote “to be free, a man must be free of his brothers” means that you as a person, you are different from every person that you are around, You do not have to be like everyone or you are not forced to be the same person. You have your own life and your own personality you should live your life to the fullest and people have to accept who you really are. Equality has lived a different life because as he was born he was forced to be the same person everyone else has. You have a good life and you should be thankful you that you live in a free country, be happy with…

    • 463 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Does something as simple as a book have the power to change a society? Can a change of rules morph the North Korean culture into a more liberating society? Just as books changed Equality 7-2521 in the novel Anthem by Ayn Rand? As readers dive into this communist and totally controlled society that takes place in Rand’s novel, their minds can’t help but be completely intrigued by such an intense life that our main character, Equality 7-2521, is forced to live. A place where the words “I”, “me”, “myself”, etc. are completely vanished and people act as if they were never words at all. Is that life all that much different from the ones that North Koreans are now living?…

    • 1820 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Especially if you have a a lot of friends and family who care for you. It could also be the best thing to do too, depending on the situation. Equality had very few friends, and a small amount of people actually cared for him. Putting himself first seemed like the only thing he could do, since being forced to be a street sweeper did not allow him to pursue his ambitions. Equality is used to being the same as everyone else, so while in the tunnel, the experiments help him not feel that way anymore.…

    • 604 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Equality 7-2521

    • 535 Words
    • 3 Pages

    No individuality just follows the rules and controls Today, people live their lives however they want to, but how about living in a society where everyone is completely equal with no sense individuality? In Anthem, the council decides what is best for the city. The rules are here to maintain the citizens and keep them to be fair as possible. But Equality 7-2521 will change everything about that because he’s tired of living in a society where it controls his life style.…

    • 535 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Would I break the law to save a loved one? People would say yes without even knowing the situation. Others wouldn't want to put their lives in danger as in breaking the law. The books we looked at to answer this question were Anthem by Ayn Rand, “emancipation proclamation,” by Abraham Lincoln, “Prometheus,” from Greek Mythology, “Critical Thinking” audio by Leo and as a class we did a Socratic Seminar. I would definitely break the law to save a loved one.…

    • 653 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    The music album “2112” by the band Rush has many similarities, as well as differences in comparison to Ayn Rand’s novella Anthem. Both stories are set in a dystopian era, where individuality is shameful and the will of their brothers is all that matters. In the two stories, both main characters are curious and open-minded. They each find something new and forbidden. In the novella Anthem, there is no distinctiveness between characters.…

    • 1064 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Egoism In Anthem

    • 581 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Imagine not having your own goal in life. My goal is to become successful. I wouldn't want to share that with anybody, but myself. Imagine not being able to get away from anyone. Well, this happened to Equality in the book, Anthem but in America, you can do whatever you want alone.…

    • 581 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays