Human Spirit In Ayn Rand's Anthem

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Within the dystopian setting of Ayn Rand’s Anthem, the human spirit is enslaved and oppressed. Living under a totalitarian dictatorship, all people are obligated to live unselfishly. Beneath this collectivist regime, everyone lives a life of servitude and dependence on one another. There is no individuality, no identity, no sense of self, no word “I”. Taking its place is the word “WE”, emphasizing the collective body that encompasses all. In order for the State to maintain control over its subordinates, it has meticulously brainwashed all to believe that it is wrong to be different, to have preference, to be superior, and to think or act independently from the collective. With these rules as the moral doctrine, each person is conscientiously bound by the chains that these laws represent. Living in a society plagued by a “fear without name”, Equality 7-2521 refuses to surrender his sense of self (46). Instead of conceding, he chooses to go against those rules, ultimately granting himself freedom and identity. Enslaved to the collective by its altruistic chains, Equality’s passion to learn and transgressions set him free. …show more content…
His mind and body are already transgression themselves, for his head is too quick and his frame too large in a world where superiority is a transgression. As an outcast with an inquisitive mind, Equality asks “so many questions that the Teachers forbade it” (23). He tries to tame his burning flame of curiosity, but struggles to be dim like the rest of his brothers. Living with this curse, Equality continues to ponder the world around him due to his love for “the Science of Things” despite knowing that it was wrong (23). His constant contemplation on the matters of nature plants a seed in his subconsciousness. This seed eventually germinates and grows into the Tree of Knowledge, driving Equality’s thirst for answers to provide it the resource to
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