The Theme Of Equality 7-2521 In Ayn Rand's Anthem

“The question isn’t who is going to let me, it’s who is going to stop me”(Ayn Rand). When The Council tried to restrict the narrator, Equality 7-2521, from being different from his brothers and everyone else in the society, he still continued to think and experiment on his own. Ayn Rand’s novel Anthem, takes place in a future, dystopian society, where the idea of individualism is no longer accepted by society. Throughout the plot, Equality 7-2521 is breaking away from the rules of The City and he works as a street sweeper trying to make up for his sins. He makes some discoveries and strengthens relationships along the way. Ayn Rand included themes of individualism and taking risks throughout the novel. She also chose to include some

Teachers and authority figures continuously yelled and reprimanded Equality 7-2521 for fighting with others. Growing up he was always looked down upon as many saw him as a great evil because of his differences (Rand 18). Being a very curious youth, he began to ask many questions and think a lot. Knowing it was wrong to have a preference over something or someone else, he wanted more than anything to be assigned the job of a scholar. When the day came for the Council of Vocations to decide everyone's job, Equality 7-2521 was assigned to the Home of Street Sweepers. He was still glad because it meant working this job would help him make up for the sins he committed (Rand 26). During his years as a street sweepers, he became good friends with International 4-8818 and falls in love with Liberty 5-3000, or as he renamed her, The Golden One. One day while sweeping the streets he and International 4-8818 discover a tunnel and they keep it a secret. Time goes by and Equality 7-2521 keeps writing in his journal while he's in the tunnel and soon invents the lightbulb after discovering electricity (Rand 59). Coming home late to the Home of Street Sweepers the

The author made simple things to have a greater meaning. She chose to include symbols such as: light, the forest, the golden one, the river, and manuscripts, each of those having a different, more meaningful idea behind it. Ayn Rand’s idea of light’s symbolism is truth. For example, the light that the candles give off is very dim and does not brighten many areas. So being that The City is only lit by candles this means that there is secrecy in it and The Councils are hiding something from the people. When Equality 7-2521 brings the light bulb to the World Council they reject it not because it's a bad idea, but because they are afraid. They see that this individual was able to create something they could not and they disliked it because it broke the rules of being common to everyone else. Authorities feared that he was too smart and would cause an outbreak and people would start to think more for themselves and change the way the society works. With a simple lightbulb, the truth was revealed about why Equality 7-2521 wasn't allowed to do certain things and why people thought he was evil. Another symbol used was The Forest. The Uncharted Forest, as the characters called it, stands for freedom. As Equality 7-2521 was in The Forest he began to feel a great weight lifted off his shoulders. He felt as though handcuffs had been taken off of him and now there were no restrictions on his abilities and