Anthem Essay
“An irrational society is a society of moral cowards—of men paralyzed by the loss of moral standards, principles and goals.” (Rand- How Does One Lead a Rational Life in an Irrational Society) Equality 7-2521 has changed his overall outlook on life once he realizes that the leaders of his past life were very irrational thus, making his opinions final by denouncing them in moral terms. He had every right to think this because the society he grew up in was corrupted in every way. He is correct to feel this way and express his feelings about the society. In Anthem, Equality 7-2521, is kept hidden from society and later realizes that the society was corrupted and not him.
In, How Does One Lead a Rational Life in an Irrational Society, Equality 7-2521 would agree with it because, Rand, explains the life of one in an irrational society as Equality 7-2521 did. He would easily connect with how, Rand, explained the Life of one because he was in that situation in the book, Anthem.
Equality 7-2521 was correct to change his mind about his past leaders because the society was completely corrupted. “Our brothers!" we cried. "Have you nothing to say to us?...” “we have much to say to a wretch who have broken all the laws and who boast of their infamy! How dared you think that your mind held greater wisdom than the minds of your brothers? And if the Council had decreed that you be a Street Sweeper, how dared you think that you could be of greater use to men than in sweeping the streets?"”(Rand 26, Anthem). This quote denotes that the members of the World Council of Scholars mind’s were corrupted by the leaders of the society because they believed that the light, Equality 7-2521 showed them was evil, and should be banished. The light was constructed by Equality 7-2521 from a box he found from the Unmentionable Times. The leaders brainwashed everyone living in the society to think of the Unmentionable Times as a bad event.
Another reason why Equality 7-2521 is correct to change his mind about his past leaders is because of the duties the council assigned them. “Yet our brothers are not like us. All is not well with our brothers. There are Fraternity 2-5503, a quiet boy with wise, kind eyes, who cry suddenly, without reason, in the midst of day or night…” “There are Solidarity 9-6347, who are a bright youth, without fear in the day, and they scream in there sleep.” (Rand 15, Anthem). This quote explains how the leaders of the society put people with emotional problems in the World Council of Scholars. They knew that the mentally unstable wouldn’t put two and two together to figure out about the truth about the Unmentionable Times. They brainwashed them to believe that the Unmentionable Times were a bad event in history, but in reality, it was when the world wasn’t as corrupted as it was in there society.
Lastly,