A Bit About Anthem by Ayn Rand
About the Author Ayn Rand was born in St. Petersburg, Russia, in 1905. At age six she taught herself to read and decided to make fiction writing her career at age nine.
About the Author Rand was age 12 at the time of the Russian (or Bolshevik) Revolution (1917). Even as a young girl, she objected to the Communist principle that man must exist for the sake of the State.
About the Author The final overthrow of Russia by the Communist party brought the confiscation of her father’s pharmacy and periods of near-starvation for her family.
About the Author At the University of Petrograd, Rand studied philosophy and history. When introduced to American history, she immediately took America as her model of what a nation of free men and women could be. Eventually, Rand obtained permission to leave Soviet Russia for the United States. She spend six months with relatives in Chicago and then worked in Hollywood as a screenwriter for much of her adult life.
About the Author During her career as a screenwriter, Rand began writing novels. Between writing chapters of The Fountainhead, Rand worked on the “anti-collectivist novella Anthem” (1937). After writing several more novels, Rand wrote and lectured on a personal philosophy she called “objectivism.” This philosophy upheld her belief in reason, individuality, and capitalism.
Plot Summary Anthem is a work of dystopian fiction (dystopian is a word with Greek roots that refers to a society opposite of a utopia). It takes place in a future world in which society is governed by “collectivism” (a system similar to communism). The community has many rules with strict consequences and virtually no freedoms.
Plot Summary In Anthem, technological advancement is limited by government (known as The Council). The society of Anthem lives in a dark age in which technology like electricity has disappeared. Men and women are assigned jobs at birth and reproduction is managed by the state. The concept of individuality has been eliminated, and the word “I” has disappeared from the language. All individual names have been made numbers preceded by words “Equality” and “Union.”
The Council
Protagonist / Hero The protagonist in the story is Equality-72521. Equality stands out in a uniform and regulated society. He is exceptionally tall (6’1) and caught up in his own free thinking. He represents a superior intellect in a world of automatons.
Concepts in Anthem Rand a struggle between contrasting philosophies through the course of the novel. Rand refers to these philosophies in varied terms, including: Altruism – man exists to serve others and this self-sacrifice is the highest moral duty Egoism – man’s primary moral obligation is to achieve his own welfare and well-being. Collectivism – the subjugation of the individual to a group. Collectivism holds that man must be chained to a collective action and collective thought for the sake of the “common good.” Individualism – every man is an independent and sovereign entity who possess an inalienable right to his own life.
Resources Glossary of Definitions by Ayn Rand. Edited by Allison T. Kunze and Jean F. Moroney. (Second Renaissance Books, 1999). The Ayn Rand Lexicon. Edited by Harry Binswanger. (Meridian Books, 1986).
Intro Activity to Anthem Composition Book #12 Read the poem “Invictus” by William Ernest Henley and answer the following questions: What kind of “night” could suppress an individual? What other language in the poem suggests the theme of oppression? Sum up the message of the poem in one sentence. This is obviously related to the novel we are about to read. What do you predict might happen in Anthem?