Anthem

IOne major theme in the novel Anthem by Ayn Rand is the theme of individualism. In the society within this book, the individual is erased. The leaders go as far as to rule that everyone refers to themselves as "we." With this rule in place, the people are left without any sense of who they are. Everyone is the same, leaving no room for any individual thought. The people are left as shapeless beings with the fear that if they do have any different perspectives from the rest of society, they will be rejected. However, there is a flaw in this system. Human nature allows a person to never be dominated. The inner feelings and thoughts being suppressed will always ultimately resurface due to the fact that freedom is a part of everyone. This is what happened with the main character Equality 7-2521. Equality, having his invention rejected, runs away to the forest where he begins living with his companion. The message of the individual always rising to the top is what Rand uses as a theme to better portray her novel.

I AM. I THINK. I WILL. My hands... My spirit... My sky... My forest... This earth is mine...

I am a man. This miracle of me is mine to own and keep, and mine to guard, and mine to use, and mine to kneel before! ... For the word "we" must never be spoken, save by one's choice or as a second thought. This word must never be placed first within mand's soul, else it becomes a monster, the root of all evils on earth, the root of man's torture by men, and of an unspeakable lie. The word "we" is as a lime poured over men, which sets and hardens to stone, and crushes all beneath it, and that which is white adn that which is black are lost equally in the grey of it... and now I see this face of god, and I raise this god over the earth, this god whom men have sought since men came into being, this god who will grant them joy and peace and pride. This god, this one word:

"I" (97)

I chose this partial passage because I loved how powerful Eqaulity spoke here. His full liberation is so fascinating to read through. It is hard to imagine losing the word "I" in one's vocabulary. It also makes the reader realize how powerful such a word is. Just by reading what Equality is saying can see how much respect he holds for the word. He pretty much compares it to a god. In the end, I could not fit the complete passage for it is three pages long, but this short excerpt speaks volumes in itself.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kzlcJMzay6M

I found the above video. I think as a school project, the makers were asked to create a trailer for the book. Check it out.

I enjoyed this novel. It was a fast, easy read. I enjoyed the message that Rand was portraying, and I also enjoyed her style of writing. The other factor that made me like this novel better was the fact that I did not like We. The novel also had many good quotes in it as well.