Introduction
"It is a sin to write this. It is a sin to think words no others think and to put them down upon a paper no others are to see. It is base and evil. It is as if we were speaking alone to no ears but our own. And we know well that there is no transgression blacker than to do or think alone. We have broken the laws. The laws say that men may not write unless the Council of Vocations bid them so. May we be forgiven!"
Spoken by the protagonist, Equality 7-2521, these lines begin Anthem, a dystopian novella by Ayn Rand. This webquest should familiarize you with the novel, its author, and key concepts you will encounter as you read.
Task
Today, your task is to explore the links provided and complete your notes outline. You will need to thoroughly read all of the material and be prepared to participate in a discussion about it tomorrow during class.
Process
1. Author Background Information
Required Reading
Use this website to answer the following questions about Ayn Rand.
1.) How is Rand like her main character in Anthem?
2.) Where is Rand from?
3.) Why did Rand want to leave Russia?
4.) What is the story in Anthem about?
5.) What was Rand's view on collectivism?
http://atlassociety.org/commentary/commentary-blog/3832-ayn-rand-s-anth…
2. Anthem Background
Anthem is Ayn Rand’s “hymn to man’s ego.” It is the story of one man’s rebellion against a totalitarian, collectivist society. Equality 7-2521 is a young man who yearns to understand “the Science of Things.” But he lives in a bleak, dystopian future where independent thought is a crime and where science and technology have regressed to primitive levels. All expressions of individualism have been suppressed in the world of Anthem; personal possessions are nonexistent, individual preferences are condemned as sinful and romantic love is forbidden. Obedience to the collective is so deeply ingrained that the very word “I” has been erased from the language. In pursuit of his quest for knowledge, Equality 7-2521 struggles to answer the questions that burn within him — questions that ultimately lead him to uncover the mystery behind his society’s downfall and to find the key to a future of freedom and progress. Anthem anticipates the theme of Rand’s first best seller, The Fountainhead, which she stated as “individualism versus collectivism, not in politics, but in man’s soul.”
Required Reading
Character list
Use this website to explore and identify information about the following characters.
1.) Equality 7-2521
2.) The Golden One
http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/anthem/characters.html
Narrator
Use this website to read about the unique narrator in Anthem. Please write a sentence or two about the narrator.
http://www.shmoop.com/anthem-ayn-rand/narrator-point-of-view.html
Vocabulary
Use this website to define the following words. Please DO NOT write the definitions verbatim. Please paraphrase and shorten the definitions.
Council of Eugenics
Council of the Home
Council of Vocations
Eugenics
Great Rebirth
Great Truth
Home of the Scholars
Home of the Useless
Palace of Corrective Detention
Palace of Mating
Time of Mating
Transgression of Preference
Uncharted Forest
Unmentionable Times
World Council
World Council of Scholars
http://www.cliffsnotes.com/literature/a/anthem/study-help/full-glossary…
3. Key Concepts
Use a search engine of your choice to explore and define the following terms.
Conformity
Collectivism
Altruism
Egoism
Individualism
Philosophy of Objectivism
4. Anthem
Required Reading
Below is a link to a PDF version of Anthem. Please read the first three pages and answer the following questions.
http://www.anderson5.net/cms/lib02/SC01001931/Centricity/Domain/222/Ant…
1.) What is narrator doing at the beginning of the novel? Where is he?
2.) What sins has he committed?
3.) What information are we given about the narrator?
4.) Equality 7-2521 mentions words that are cut into the marble outside the Palace of the World Council. What do these words tell us about his society?
5.) When were the Unmentionable Times and what happened?
6.) Describe Equality's childhood. What impact might this type of upbringing have on the children in this society?
Evaluation
Your notes outline will be evaluated fo completion AND accuracy.
Conclusion
Please submit your notes and be prepared for a class discussion tomorrow about the information you explored today.