Literary Analysis- Max H.

Anthem by Ayn Rand
Literary Analysis Post
Rotation #5 - Part 7 & 8


4) Describe a choice made by a character in the novel.  Why did the character make this choice?  Was his or her action justified?

During these few chapters read for this rotation, there the scenes going on were actually having more action involved as the author describes the way how Equality 7-2521 is sentenced to be punished by the World Council, however he manages to flee. This was a moment that was quite tense, though it was a little hard to understand who was who as the terms ''we'' and ''us'' are widely used throughout the novel. Briefly, chapter seven starts out with our main character striding rather excitedly to attempt a visit to the Scholars one morning, feeling a sigh of relief that nobody from the Palace of Corrective Detention was present to force him back to his prison cell. As he encounters the Scholars, Equality 7-2521 is looking unfashionable and unethical with a tunic that is scattered with blood stains and dirt patches. Evidently, the Scholars look shocked in horror and the eldest of the group, Collective 0-0009 insists on the main character to admit who he is and why he is here. With the opportunity Equality 7-2521 demonstrates his relatively fascinating discovery, which he pulls out a light bulb and fires it up. Surprisingly, the council became stunned, yet in a bad fashion. Various want him to be publicly executed, while others want him to be sent to the World Council for them to judge his transgressions. In my opinion, this was a terrible choice to visit the Scholars and escape from the Palace of Corrective Detention, made by Equality 7-2521 because it really cost him in the near future.
From the beginning, Equality 7-2521 believed that be was more than what he was assigned. He believed that one day he could be more than a Street Sweeper, maybe even a famous figure who might be inspiring to the world. However, this action could not be justified and not really be defended successfully. In this peculiar society, committing a transgression is real serious and can be resulted in death. It seems like there is this powerful rule which controls everything that happens, and this rule wants to keep the people safe and sound. Although there are some possible arguments that support Equality's decision, my thought it that it was a somewhat quick decision that required years of thinking, but it only took a small portion of time meaning that the plan wasn't well though out in order for it to succeed. To me, it is always good to think positive about what you do though. If someone assigns you a job, you should not only do it, but attempt your best effort at it. In Equality's case, he was made to be a Street Sweeper, what he is reflected on how he was rejected by the Scholars, and how he is a ''lower class'' person, or not as respected. The thought I have about this, is that Equality should think that he is sweeping streets for a reason, he is helping keep the community clean and free of any filth in the ground that could cause some problems.

(Source)
This image/quote is one that demonstrates the vitality of decisions in life. Sometimes, a decision may seem at first small, harmless, a factor that won't influence your life. Let's take the example from the image: there are hundreds of dominoes piled in a single file line. If one decides to knock one down, that will change the entire structure of the dominoes, creating it into a transformed mess. This shows how small decisions, like the one Equality 7-2521 made, can influence everything done.