The Freedom in I
Life, Liberty, and property--these three words are the fundamental ideology of America. To many, these rights are easily taken for granted. But pause, take a minute, envision a City in which the citizens have no rights--void of all individualism--only rights as a collective whole. This is the premise of Ayn Rand’s Anthem. In this dystopian novella, the collective will of The City is valued over that of each citizen. This communist-like state theoretically sounds perfect on paper. After all, everyone is equal, and has a purpose--to serve this collective state. But one of The City’s residents, Equality 7-2521, finds he is not satisfied with his life, nor does he have any joy in it. Throughout the story Equality 7-2521 finds …show more content…
In The City, the laws are in place not for the people, but to keep the Council in power. The Council achieves this by an extreme version of collectivism. However, to shield the people from any internal or self seeking thought, is no fair law and has no intention of helping the commoner at all. These laws cause resentment of the government, and because the people have no rights they are miserable. This leads Equality to extreme acts. He flees The City in hopes of being free from the Council’s tyranny. When in the forest, the Golden One says, “We wish to be damned with you, rather than blessed with all our brothers. Do as you please with us but do not send us away from you” (Rand 82). This proves The City limits its people to the point where they would rather break the law and be happy than suffer and be oppressed by the Council. It is this oppression by the Council that causes Equality to rebel and create a free society. Equality’s struggle for liberty causes him to construct a world which all men are free, so that man will never be in the dull grasp of …show more content…
Many laws like such exists to prevent anyone from having time alone, because they will discover the newfound joys of individual freedom. The City says that happiness comes from being with one’s brothers in society. Controversially, Equality refuses to abide by the rules. While in the underground hole Equality says, “And yet there is no shame or regret. We say to ourselves that we are a wretch and a traitor.… in our heart there is the first peace we have known in twenty years” (Rand 37). By being alone, Equality realizes that having the freedom to do as he wishes is the greatest feeling he has had in his life. He comes to the realization that his joy comes from the ability to be free from any restraint imposed on him by The City. Due to his experiences in The City, Equality would create a society where individuals can be free and
Life, Liberty, and property--these three words are the fundamental ideology of America. To many, these rights are easily taken for granted. But pause, take a minute, envision a City in which the citizens have no rights--void of all individualism--only rights as a collective whole. This is the premise of Ayn Rand’s Anthem. In this dystopian novella, the collective will of The City is valued over that of each citizen. This communist-like state theoretically sounds perfect on paper. After all, everyone is equal, and has a purpose--to serve this collective state. But one of The City’s residents, Equality 7-2521, finds he is not satisfied with his life, nor does he have any joy in it. Throughout the story Equality 7-2521 finds …show more content…
In The City, the laws are in place not for the people, but to keep the Council in power. The Council achieves this by an extreme version of collectivism. However, to shield the people from any internal or self seeking thought, is no fair law and has no intention of helping the commoner at all. These laws cause resentment of the government, and because the people have no rights they are miserable. This leads Equality to extreme acts. He flees The City in hopes of being free from the Council’s tyranny. When in the forest, the Golden One says, “We wish to be damned with you, rather than blessed with all our brothers. Do as you please with us but do not send us away from you” (Rand 82). This proves The City limits its people to the point where they would rather break the law and be happy than suffer and be oppressed by the Council. It is this oppression by the Council that causes Equality to rebel and create a free society. Equality’s struggle for liberty causes him to construct a world which all men are free, so that man will never be in the dull grasp of …show more content…
Many laws like such exists to prevent anyone from having time alone, because they will discover the newfound joys of individual freedom. The City says that happiness comes from being with one’s brothers in society. Controversially, Equality refuses to abide by the rules. While in the underground hole Equality says, “And yet there is no shame or regret. We say to ourselves that we are a wretch and a traitor.… in our heart there is the first peace we have known in twenty years” (Rand 37). By being alone, Equality realizes that having the freedom to do as he wishes is the greatest feeling he has had in his life. He comes to the realization that his joy comes from the ability to be free from any restraint imposed on him by The City. Due to his experiences in The City, Equality would create a society where individuals can be free and