Literary Analysis Blog Juho

Literary Analysis

Juho Kim

Humanities 3.8

Mrs. Hancock

How does the protagonist change from the beginning to the end of the novel?  What does this character learn about himself (or herself) and about how the world works?

During the course of the novel, Equality, the protagonist undergoes a series of changes that narrow down to one specific main idea. He realises the power of each individual and the concept of individuality.

In the beginning he Equality 7-2521 was more like everyone, thinking about everyone, and believing the power of the group. But after he discovers something called light, he starts to believe in the power of an individual. He realises there are some parts that only some know and only some should know which is also the concept of individual secrets. For his entire life, he has been told one thing, had his entire story being planned out before him. "For our face and our body were beautiful. Our face was not the faces of our brothers, for we felt not pity when looking upon it. Our body was not like the bodies of our brothers, for our limbs were straight and thin and hard and strong" (Ayn Rand, part 8) In this line, it is clearly visible the change in his thoughts. If this were to be evaluated in the first chapters of the novel, it would have been pitiful, wrong and impossible for him to see his own beauty, to accept himself or even get rid of himself from the group. Now, he is able to realize his true identity. He believes in his own potential and what life truly is about. Now, Equality was able to see that men are able to discover and shape their own destinies. He has finally made a decision based on his own interests rather than the group's. By fleeing, he is able to take control of his actions and what he chooses to do.

individuality

Risk taking Researcher Juho

Ayn Rand was a Russian-American novelist, philosopher, playwright, and screenwriter. She is known for her two best-selling novels, The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged, and for developing a philosophical system she called Objectivism. In 1985, Rand's heir Leonard Peikoff established the Ayn Rand Institute, a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting Rand's ideas and works. In 1990, philosopher David Kelley founded the Institute for Objectivist Studies, now known as The Atlas Society. In 2001 historian John McCaskey organized the Anthem Foundation for Objectivist Scholarship, which provides grants for scholarly work on Objectivism in academia. The charitable foundation of BB&T Corporation has also given grants for teaching Rand's ideas or works.

The book Anthem was written in 1937 and first published in 1938 in England. She didn't have the idea of writing Anthem until she read a little bit of The Saturday Evening Post. The summary until now is that Equality 7-2521, writing by candlelight in a tunnel under the earth, tells the story of his life up to that point. Later, he realized that he was born with a "curse", that makes him learn quickly and ask many questions. He excelled at the Science of Things and dreamed of becoming a Scholar. However, a Council of Vocations assigns all people to their Life Mandate, and he was assigned to be a Street Sweeper. He accepts the assignment as a penance for his "Transgression of Preference" in secretly desiring to be a Scholar. He later finds out about electricity and presents it to the World Council of Scholars. He thought the World Council of Scholars would like it yet, they wanted to destroy it but he flees to the Uncharted Forest. The next day Golden One comes and they live together in the cave.

Citations:

Ayn Rand

Imagining the Golden One

Historical Context Week 3

Which ideas in your novel are connected to its particular setting, and which ideas are still relevant today?

There are some ideas in this book which are connected to the past world. An idea that connects to the world is during the time of Edison. In part five, it is mentioned that "we" make up something called light and that "we" shall be forgiven for what we say tonight. This idea of being forgiven for saying something is connects to the time of Medieval times because people were thought to be forgiven if they did something kind. They thought they would be forgiven by god that time. But when it connects to light and making it, it goes to the time of Edison, who made the lightbulb. Which shows the reader that this is not a straight connection to a particular period of Earth's history.

Light bulb

Another idea is when Equality 7-2521 goes to Palace of Corrective Detention. This can be connected to the idea of when Copernicus goes to the church to get judged on either if he should die or not because he has stated that Earth wasn't the middle or the center of the Solar system. Equality 7-2521 was taken to the Palace because of the light but then, Edison who made the lightbulb didn't have to go anywhere. While Copernicus who stated that the Sun was the center of the universe, which made the "church leaders" or the bishops to kill him. Equality 7-2521 didn't die during part six but we never know if he would be fully connected to Copernicus. But for now, a reader can see that he is fully connected to Copernicus.

Copernicus

Anthem Connection Captain Juho Kim

Chapter 3

"But we think that the Council of Scholars is blind. The secrets of this earth are not for all men to see, but only for those who will seek them. We know, for we have found a secret unknown to all our brothers."

This quote has many connections that we can see to our world. One of the connection to our world which I thought of was The Council of Scholars being Earth and that there are facts that only some men know some secrets. We know because there are some top secret  documents only known to some governments and no other men knows it. For example, the government in South Korea contains top secret documents not shown to anybody else except for the president and the members of the parliament. Making this story connected to real life.

Top secret document

"One night, we were cutting open the body of a dead frog when we saw its leg jerking. It was dead, yet it moved. Some power unknown to men was making it move. We could not understand it. Then, after many tests, we found the answer. The frog had been hanging on a wire of copper; and it had been the metal of our knife which had sent the strange power to the copper through the brine of the frog's body." 

This is mentioned in the book and it is when the people find out there is something called energy and that energy in our world is mentioned as electricity. So electricity is all around us but before there would only be candles lit in houses to study. But there was also the same thing that happened to mankind's history. Luigi Galvani at the year 1780 found out a dead frog's legs twitched because of his forks and knifes (Wikipedia). He was curious and researched and found out that copper and zinc were making it twitch which makes electricity flow. Which means that he was the first one to find out and was the first one to only know the reason why it twitched until nearby scientists saw that and also tried it out to see if it was magic or logic.

Photo of Luigi Galvani

Citations for information:

"Luigi Galvani." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Web. 21 Apr. 2015. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luigi_Galvani>.  

Line Illuminator Juho

"We are one in all and all in one.

There are no men but only the great we,

one, indivisible and forever."

I have selected this quote because first, this quote has been cut out due to the laws, the Palace of World Council, which reminded me of some historical facts that many kings and royals banned the words having to do with knowledge, freedom, and re-unity because they thought the words would influence the citizens and they would be overthrown because of the reason. Secondly I chose this quote because its a sign of like a rebellion or a coup' de tat so that many people would get the laws as they wanted. But these were cut out a long time ago which makes it people not wanting to repeat this.

name tag

"It is only we, Equality 7-2521, we alone who were born with a curse."

This quote that I have selected brought a question up to me which was why were people born with curses when the ancestors or rather others have made mistakes which brought out the last supreme transgression? I think its because Equality 7-2521 has mentioned that they made crimes that weren't seen but it probably has nothing to do with the people who were born later. So I think this quote is interesting due to the fact that people thought of weird stuff which was creative but made no sense.

Anthem

Literary Analysis-Ha Marron

Ha Marron

Literary Analysis

Anthem

By Ayn Rand

Rotation #4

Part 7 & 8





What themes does Ayn Rand explores in Anthem?

Link to Literary Analysis

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Historical Text -Christian

Why was this book controversial?  Which themes or ideas were challenging to society?

Well I would like to start with the fact that they use the word "We" instead of "I". For example "We were born with a curse" (Part One). Which they HAVE to, its not because they want to, because if they don't there will be consequences such as death. So they have been taught to use "We, Us, Them, They, etc". Which can show the idea of individuality (Even though in the book they make it look as if it were bad).  I think throughout the book there will be more cases in which controversial things will happen, but for now I feel like the use of "We" is the most controversial of the first 4 parts (And the most strict law).

Image Source:

"AJ." : Equal Opportunity Week 16. Web. 27 Oct. 2014. <http://ahmed-jamal.blogspot.com.br/2011/05/equal-opportunity-week-16.html>.

Historical Context - Daphne M

Daphne M
Rotation #2
Historical Context



Why was this book controversial? Which themes or ideas were challenging to society?


I think that in the book Anthem, Ayn Rand (the author) is sending a controversial message about the "I" or individuality theme. In the book, being unique or an individual is a bad thing. You could be killed or tortured only by saying the word I, so instead, they referred to themselves as "we". On the other hand, she is trying to show in the book that being yourself is good. Its good to be different, and sometimes you just need to step out of the box. Like Equality 7-2521. He is not like the others and he knows it. He even knows its bad to be different in his community. 

Connection Captain - Daphne M

After reading section 1&2 of the novel Anthem by Ayn Rand I had many questions in my mind, but mostly connections. The first thing I most connected too were other books. The book seems to be a dystopian novel, and will further on show more of that. This reminds me of other dystopian novels such as, city of ember, uglies, divergent, the hunger games, etc. But, the one I most connected with was the Giver. It appers to be both societies are controled and don't seem to have freedom what so ever. The main charecter, who seems to be Equality 7-2521, reminds me of Jonas in The Giver. This is because they both are curious and intelligent. They both want to seek the truth. I have a feeling that Equality 7-2521 will try to find things he isn't supposed too, and will get in trouble like Jonas did. Additionally, as the book states in part 1, they don't know nothing about history or anything from the past. They call it the "Unmentionable Times". Equality 7-2521 is an individual. He is not like the others. His teacher got mad because he was too smart, and he even tried to be like Union 5-3992 a stupid boy in his class.


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In part 2 of the book Anthem, we see more about Equality 7-2521. We see that he falls in love with a girl named Liberty 5-300 or The Golden One. They fall in love with each other and talk for the first time. This reminds me again of The Giver. When Jonas falls in love with Fiona and starts having dreams with her. I predict, Equality 7-2521 will eventually learn more since he is so smart, and will pass his knowledge to the Golden One. But, I think she will betray him since in this community, it is wrong to keep secrets of things you should not know. On the other hand, something I do not understand is why the community thinks the ones who lived in the unmentionable times, are evil. Is it because maybe they think they destroyed those times? I dont know.

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Anthem Parts 9-10, Line Illuminator

Anthem, by Ayn Rand

     "We have followed you," they said, "and we shall follow you wherever you go. If danger threatens you, we shall face it also. If it be death, we shall die with you. You are damned, and we wish to share your damnation."

     I chose this quote because it ensured me that Liberty 5-000 truly loves Equality now and it gave me the thought that they will stay together forever. Now, Liberty 5-000 doesn't care about breaking the laws anymore. She thinks like Equality which was the cause of love between them and it made me more curious about what will happen in the story and if the love will impact the story.

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     "We bent to raise the Golden One to their feet, but when we touched them, it was as if madness had stricken us. We seized their body and we pressed our lips to theirs. "

     This quote clearly represents love between Equality 7-2521 and Liberty 5-000. I believe that it made the audience 100% sure that the two characters love each other. I have been thinking till now that love has been growing between them since they met each other. However, there were some people who thought that it wasn't love. They thought that it was a feeling of panic because they broke the laws. This quote ensured the readers that the strange feeling which Equality mentioned was love. 

 link

Anthem Part 9-10

Andrew Fischer
Illustrious Artist

Sentence from the book:
     It was on our second day in the forest that we heard steps behind us. We hid in the bushes, and we waited. The steps came closer. And then we saw the fold of a white tunic among the trees, and a gleam of gold.

Illustration:

     This illustration represent when Equality 7-2521 was staying in the forest for a few days, and then on there second day in the forest, they suddenly herd footsteps coming from a direction they could not tell. So they hid in the bushes, and then a man in a white tunic came across their eyes. And that person in the white tunic was, the Golden One. Yet, Equality 7-2521 wasn't sure if they were happy, because in the book they seemed very frightened.
     As they talked Equality 7-2521 kept asking the Golden One questions. Also, Equality 7-2521 had noticed the Golden One had cuts and scrapes all over himself, but he has not noticed, because he was intrigued he found Equality 7-2521.
      

Risk Taking Researcher - Final Week Post - Giulia D.

PART 11 AND 12

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 Published in England and written in 1937, Anthem, is a dystopian fiction novel that takes place at a futuristic date and place when mankind enter another dark age. This dark age was created by irrationality, collectivism, and socialistic thinking of the people. Individuality and freedom, has been completely demolished, and technology is rising up to another level.

About the Author: 

As a teen, the author of this book, Ayn Rand, initially conceived Anthem as a play. She lived in Soviet Russia, but later on life migrated to the USA. Rand didn't really picture the possibility of writing and publishing Anthem, but after reading a short story in The Saturday Evening Post, she reconsidered the idea. Ayn Rand submitted Anthem to them. 

"Rand's working title was Ego. Leonard Peikoff explains the meaning behind this title: "[Rand] is (implicitly) upholding the central principles of her philosophy and of her heroes: reason, values, volition, individualism." Thinking that the original title was too blunt, unemotional, and would give away too much of the theme, Rand changed the title to Anthem. "The present novel, in Miss Rand's mind, was from the outset an ode to man's ego. It was not difficult, therefore, to change the working title: to move from 'ego' to 'ode' or 'anthem', leaving the object celebrated by the ode to be discovered by the reader."  (Wikipedia)

Curiosity

 There are similarities between Anthem and the 1921 novel, We by Yevgeny Zamyatin, another author who had lived in communist Russia. The similarities were these:

1. A novel taking the form of a secret diary or journal.
2. People having numbers instead of names.
3. Children separated from their parents and brought up by the State
4. Individualism disposed of in favor of collective will.
5. A male who discovers individuality through his relationship with a female character.
6. A forest as a 'free' place outside the dystopian city.
7. The main character is a man.
8. This character discovers a link to the past, when men were free, in a tunnel under the Earth. (Wikipedia)

Publication history

In the beginning, Ayn Rand planned on publishing Anthem as a magazine story or serial, but her agent encouraged her to publish it as a book. She did it! After the success of Rand's novel The Fountainhead, Anthem, in a revised edition, was officially published in the US in 1946 by Pamphleteers. 

Awards

The Libertarian Futurist Society awarded Anthem its Hall of Fame in 1987. In 2014, Anthem was nominated for a Best Novel prize. 

Adaptations: 

Finally, as an initial thought, Anthem was adapted into a play in 2013 by Jeff Britting. This plays first performance, was in Denver and later opened on Broadway in September 2013. 

All info searched on:

Wikipedia, Wikipedia, ed. "Anthem (novella)." Wikipedia. 

Wikipedia, 23 Sept. 2014. Web. 28 Sept. 2014.

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthem_(novella)>. 

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Favorite Quote: 

"I owe nothing to my brothers, nor do I gather debts from them. I ask none to live for me, nor do I live for any others. I covet no man's soul, nor is my soul theirs to covet.

I am neither foe nor friend to my brothers, but such as each of them shall deserve of me. And to earn my love, my brothers must do more than to have been born. I do not grant my love without reason, nor to any chance passer-by who may wish to claim it. I honor men with my love. But honor is a thing to be earned.

I shall choose friends among men, but neither slaves nor masters."

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Anthem -- Line Illuminator -- 9/10 -- Julia Jacob

While reading chapter 10 or the book Anthem, by Ayn Rand I came across a very interesting line that Equality 7-2521 describes a mirror without having any knowledge of what he is looking at. "There were great pieces of glass on the wall, but it was not glass, for when we look upon it we saw our own bodies and all the things behind us, as on the face of a lake." This is very interesting because since the society he lives in cannot have any form of individuals, or showing individuality, there were no mirrors available to the citizens. This is because everyone had to thing as a group, or "share" the same thoughts. No one could have their own accomplishments such as the light box. 

Anthem -- Connection Captain -- 7/8 -- Julia Jacob

The book Anthem, by Ayn Rand clearly shows that this dystopian novel can connect with several world issues such as the war between Russia and Ukraine. Speaking for the Ukrainian government, what seems to be the problem is how the Russian government is taking Ukraine's voice away, by this I mean that Russia is speaking for Ukrainians living in Crimea where there are those who are not in favor, and therefore Russia cannot affirm that all the Ukrainian people will find or want to find a "safe haven" in that country. Russia has to take care of their own problems, rather they are social, economic, or political before attempting to offer Ukraine or Crimea protection because if help was needed the government would have asked, specially if this decision could cause war. 

The Connection between this event and the fact in which no one that is part of the society given in the book has their own voice, or has no option to choose for them relates to the current event. The same way that all individuals are only allowed to speak for all men and are taken away their rights, that is what is happening between Russia and the Ukrainian government. The rights of the people are being taken away.