...Setting The setting of Anthem takes place in a dystopia. In this dystopia the World Council wishes for all men to be equal and alike. The council decides on jobs for all the brothers, and then expects them to do their job correctly. In the dystopia there are also multiple rules you must follow, and if you don't you will be punished. Then later in the novel they are placed in the woods, away from civilization. They live in a Symbols Uncharted forest; This symbolizes the unknown Brothers; In this novel “brothers” symbolizes everyone together labeled as one group. The number after each of their names; This symbolizes who they are as a person and within their “category”. Allusions Unmentionable times; The unmentionable times is an allusion...
Words: 1306 - Pages: 6
...Anthem: The Process of Liberation Many years ago, I read my first book by Ayn Rand, Anthem. I completed the book in about four hours. At the time, I was not mature enough to fully appreciate Anthem's powerful symbolism. My attitude as I read the beginning of the book was one of indifference and confusion, maturing only later into concern and vigorous interest. This experience began a new phase in my intellectual development that soon led me to read Atlas Shrugged. I then started on Ayn Rand's non-fictional works. My understanding of Rand's philosophical system, however, came piece by piece. There was no one instant of recognition, no single ``aha.'' Until recently, I was not fully aware that I had been affected so deeply. My progress was step-by-step and I had never looked all the way back. As I began to read Anthem for a second time, I found myself in acute pain, even at the first paragraph. I continued to read it feeling much as a person would when touring a concentration camp, for, in effect, that was exactly what I was doing. There was not one hint of levity in my mood; I do not even recall breathing. I was truly looking all the way back. At the end of chapter nine, when Equality 7-2521 is alone, in the most profound sense of the word, with his Golden One, she says slowly, ``We are one ... alone ... and only ... and we love you who are one ... alone ... and only,'' I feared I could tolerate the book no longer. I had finally...
Words: 422 - Pages: 2