Social Conformity In The Fountainhead, By Ayn Rand

Individuality, a thing we all take for granted, but in a collectivist society, individuality is banned in all forms and is enforced with torture and execution in the name of “brotherly love”. In the novella Anthem, written by Ayn Rand, all men are bound to the society and held captive by the government’s beliefs. The Home of Scholars is responsible for all scientific discoveries. A new act is preventing them from releasing their findings into the society. Equality also dabbles in science, and he knows that this is a transgression. Equality wishes only to study the clockwork of the world, and to be accepted into The Home of Scholars. He brings his invention of a light to the council, but is turned down because his technological advancement

Imagine a world where people are only expected to live up to 45 years old. In today's society, there are countries that experience this. In the novel Anthem, by Ayn Rand; there are many factors like lifestyle, government, medicine, and education that lead to this. There are a couple of ways where the world in the novel is similar and different to today's society.

Social conformity can cause issues in the real world if it is overused. For example, conformity can cause a bystander effect. The bystander effect is when people follow the crowd and fail to react when people are in need. Conformity can also cause people to do things that they don't necessarily want to do, but they do it because they don't want to be the odd one out. In the short story “Anthem” by Ayn Rand, conformity is a big idea in the book because everyone is controlled by how they think and speak.

In the novella, Anthem by Ayn Rand, the Council of Scholars believe that having the society and community as one whole instead of it being where the people are treated as individuals, is the best choice for all of the people. It is a sin if someone thinks about being alone and if you have thoughts or actions that go against the choice of being one whole. They worship the laws that say none among men may be alone, ever and at any time.

Collectivism in Anthem Applied to Modern Society A society that attempts to remove individual thinking is not a society at all. In dystopian literature, this type of society has been thoroughly explored by many authors. In “Anthem” by Ayn Rand, the author uses characterization and symbolism to influence the reader’s idea of totalitarianism and uses that to portray that collectivism will most likely result in the eradication of individuality. To begin, Rand uses the words of the World Council to display their influence on the mindsets of the people. When Equality speaks about his differences with society, he speaks of the World Council as a god, mentioning that it is the “body of all truth” (citation).

Imagine living in a society where everything someone does is conforming to someone else. In the novella Anthem, written by Ayn Rand, the author talks about conformity by referring to how all men need to be alike and fit in with each other. Equality 7-2521 the street sweeper, believes in the feeling of individualism and rejects the collectivist society around him. Social conformity becomes dangerous in Anthem because while Equality 7-2521 follows all the rules at the beginning of the novella, throughout the book he begins to break them.

What is a collectivist society, and how does it affect the citizens living within it? Ayn Rand faced many hardships growing up in Russia, including transitions from a monarchy to a collectivist government. This type of government prioritizes what is best for the well-being of the society as a whole and expects all citizens to do the same. . During this time, her father’s business, their only source of income, was taken from them by the government. She later moved to the United States, where she was able to pursue her passion for writing.

A captivating novelette in which a man’s priority is to serve only for his brothers, Ayn Rand’s Anthem illustrates a society that has suffered the ghastly consequences of collectivism. She depicts an oppressive culture in which the word “I” is unheard of and men belong to the collective “We.” Men’s lives are determined through the Council of Vocations, a group that maintains a powerful dictatorship by subjugating the public from the beginning of their lives. The idea that “If you are not needed by your brother men, there is no reason for you to burden the earth with your bodies” (Chapter 1) has been forced into average mindset of the vehemently maintained society. In contrast, Rand mocks the totalitarian civilization through the main

In the present society where being overwhelmed by peer pressure is common, Anthem by Ayn Rand can serve as a guide to expressing yourself to high school students. The novella portrays the challenges faced by today’s high schoolers through its exploration of individualism. High school students should read Anthem so they can learn to embrace being themselves, have a sense of freedom, and be self-determined as they learn how to navigate the world around them. Anthem occurs in a dystopian society where everyone has to be the same and not express themselves as they are. In high school, this can happen the same way too when students feel pressure to fit in with the other students around them.

Collectivism is a very common theme in Ayn Rand’s writing. From Anthem to The Fountainhead, her opinion is very clear: individualism is the source of freedom and joy, while collectivism is the root of sorrow and slavery. In Anthem, the main character, Equality 7-252, has grown up in a collectivist society that has remained strong for centuries. In that society, no one has had the choice to do what they want to do, love what (or who) they love, and simply be who they are. That society praises the idea that men live only for each other. Living for oneself is evil, a Transgression. The idea of “I”, “Me”, and “Mine” has disappeared, dragging the precious words along with it. Throughout the plot, Equality 7-2521 is seen both unintentionally and intentionally defying his society. At first, he condemns himself, describing his evil acts and mind and labeling his different mindset as a curse. “We were born with a curse. It has always driven us to thoughts which are forbidden.” (Rand 18) He is also condemned by others, for things he cannot control. He is taller than most other people, he has preferences for what he wishes to become, and he has ideas and opinions. Yet when his life assignment is Street Sweeper, he rejoices. He sees that as a way to pay penance for his sins. Later on, however, he embraces his individuality. “I am. I think. I will.” (Rand 94) He is the first to accept the idea of individuality for centuries, and helps others accept it, too.

Ayn Rand’s ideology centralizes on the idea that total human individuality is absolute and is obtained only by means of reason, self-esteem, and total worship of virtues. Atlas Shrugged ideal hero, John Galt, is the major example of objectivism and its complex layers. He is the symbol of no guilt, no fear, no submission, and no doubt in the value of the mind. Henceforth, John Galt is the reality that lies behind any human; the use of reason and self-interest as the motor for the improvement of the world; and, in consequence, the natural right to live by the power of thinking.

“World” what do you think when you hear that word? World is a planet that has life with human beings that the right to be themself, and not controlled. But in the world of the book Anthem there life is full of fear,obedience and good outcome. Their people make have all three and they can’t do anything about it. The obedience, fear and druglerg it symbolizes their world; that whats make them human, but there always a bad can't run from their problems like our people can, their in a jail that they can’t run from or see the other side of the world.

Anthem Essay "There is fear hanging in the air of the sleeping halls, and in the air of the streets. Fear walks through the City, fear without name, without shape. All men feel it and none dare to speak" (Rand 46). Life in the totalitarian world, in which Anthem is set, is an unsettling one that few people would want to live.

In life, you are born into societies where various ideas or things are thought to be normal and the customs are already established. The novel Anthem by Ayn Rand has many themes, but what I believe the theme of the novel is, to think for yourself. To think for yourself means to make your own decisions and opinions, without depending on other people. I also think that if you are going to think for yourself you can’t worry about what other people will think of what you believe in. Whether you believe that you should only have school a few days a week or you believe in a certain god, no person should feel ashamed for what they believe in. In today’s society and in the society of Anthem, people don’t think for themselves and they just follow people blindly. In the media, today we see what celebrities are saying, who they like, who they dislike, what they use, what they endorse, and we follow them because we want to be like them. Sometimes you don’t realize that you’re not thinking for yourself, but not being able to think for yourself can make you miserable and that is what Equality 7-2521 realized in Anthem.

How should we live our lives? Do you live for others or for yourself? What do you deem to be the ideal: selflessness, or selfishness? Why? Ayn Rand’s novel The Fountainhead addresses these issues and her philosophy behind it called Objectivism. Her rebellious rhetoric is to convince us that the only true virtue is selfishness and that we should abide by its standards and live for ourselves.