Transgressions In Ayn Rand's Anthem

Jacob Finley

Mrs. Cattolico

LA II Honors

15 February 2023

Anthem essay Mark Twain once hypothesized, “What’s the use you learning to do right when it's troublesome to do right and ain't no trouble to do wrong, and the wages is just the same.” This quote by Mark Twain speaks on how doing the wrong thing is not always the wrong thing to do. In Anthem by Ayn Rand, the protagonist, Equality 7-2521 is born into a dystopian and totalitarian society in which his life is chosen for him. Equality justifies his transgressions in this unfair society by accomplishing the actions which are morally right to him. This correlates to how Ayn Rand feels about society in the real world as some people need to escape from something holding them back. Rand uses

Equality was born into a situation in which he was personally stripped of making his own decisions and this is what eventually led to his rebellion. When Equality comes across the manhole he finds, he exclaims, “This place belongs to us Equality 7 - 2521, and to no other men on earth. And if we surrender it, we shall surrender our life with it also” (34). Equality finally finds something that he can call his own and someplace he can go to escape. Having some way to escape the reality he was living in brought joy to Equality in a way nothing else could. Rand uses this way to escape as a reference to how people need a break from inadequate scenarios. Equality looks forward to his time in this manhole and it eventually leads to his decision to run away. Time away from these situations will lead a person to think about what they hope to achieve. In Equality’s case, he chose to escape and live his life how he wants to live it. Another example in the book is when Equality catches the Golden One following him in the forest. Even though Equality is considered one of the damned and he is looked down upon, the Golden One still comes after him because the life with him is the life she would rather live. When asked why following Equality, the Golden one answers, “We wish to be damned with you rather than be blessed with all our brothers.”(92). The Golden One is another instance of someone escaping from a situation that they frowned upon into a place they desire. Even though there were consequences and a chance of not finding Equality, she took the risk. She had first figured out her morals and what she believed was right, then she executed her beliefs into a reality. Ayn Rand uses these examples to show a reader the steps to achieve peace along with