'Symbolism In Ayn Rand's Anthem'

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The world humans live in is imperfect and messy, however there are elements that give hope to many during difficult times. Whether it be a cross or a necklace, a lot of people have items that mean something personal to them. This is called symbolism, and it is used to show the significance of an item, person, or place. In Ayn Rand’s novella Anthem, symbolism is a key motivator and antagoniser throughout the story for the protagonist Equality.

The first sign of symbolism occurs all throughout the story. The protagonist’s “curse” symbolises his inner desires for something more than what he was forced into in the society, in other words, his inner ego. Throughout the story, Equality discovers the true horrors of the world he lives in and why …show more content…
We created it. We brought it forth from the night of the ages. We alone. Our hands. Our mind. Ours alone and only... we finished building a strange thing, from the remains of the Unmentionable Times, a box of glass, devised to give forth the power of the sky of greater strength than we had ever achieved before. (Rand, 59)
After several days of experimenting alone in his newfound safe haven, Equality was able to create his own version of the light bulb. In the society, having your own individual thoughts and ideas is illegal and morally wrong. Knowledge is only to be shared within the society and everyone is supposed to be equally matched mentally, although ironically they are all given different jobs because of their mentality. In contrast, the darkness that surrounds him from the light’s glow symbolises Equality leaving the world’s forced knowledge and creating his own beliefs.
Darkness swallowed us. There was nothing left around us, nothing save night and a thin thread of flame in it, as a crack in the wall of a prison. We stretched our hands to the wire, and we saw our fingers in the red glow. We could not see our body nor feel it, and in that moment nothing existed save our two hands over a wire glowing in a black abyss. (Rand
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