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Equality In Ayn Rand's Anthem

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As humans are naturally curious, our predisposition to fulfill our curiosity can never be muzzled. This is soon unmistakable in the oppressive, collectivist society described in Anthem when Equality 7-2521 pushes back against subjugation experienced in their society. Equality is not fond of the environment in which he lives because “it is a great sin, to be born with a head which is too quick” (21) and inhabitants are not permitted to be superior to their brothers. He has a bright mind that needs to be freed of cursed teachings and containment. Due to his personal curiosity, he takes matters into his own hands and sets his mind free by exploring his surroundings, paving the way for his peers to follow suit in order to develop a “new land …show more content…
International has a passion for art but, like Equality, did not go to the Home of the Artists but also became a Street Sweeper. Together, they follow their curiosity. By way of chance, they stumble across a cave in which they can hide their discoveries from those who don’t understand. Their ideas are suppressed in society and therefore need a place to let them go. As street sweepers, they both had the duty of cleaning the Home of the Scholars. Consequently, they removed the “glass vials, the pieces of metal, [and] the dried bones” (29) and they were both naturally curious but neither of them had a place to hide their …show more content…
In the hopes the Council will understand the invention’s gravity in society, he approaches with them only to be rejected. In his rage, Equality runs from society. Meeting up with Liberty 5-3000, they escape the confines of society and find a house built in the Unspeakable Times. Equality’s curiosity and motivation to learn drives him further in his education. He, now renamed Prometheus, and Liberty, now Gaea, start a family. Equality’s motivation ensures his child and his peers can develop a new society that promotes the spread of

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