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Figurative Language in Anthem by Ayn Rand

Summary:

Ayn Rand's Anthem utilizes extensive metaphor and symbolism to critique collectivism and celebrate individualism. The society in the novella, where personal names are replaced with numbers, symbolizes the suppression of identity. Metaphors such as "the earth was a beggar" highlight the rarity of individuality, while the protagonist Equality 7-2521's transformation into Prometheus symbolizes enlightenment and defiance. Allusions to Greek mythology and historical events underscore the narrative's themes, portraying a dystopian world devoid of personal freedom and technological progress.

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What are some metaphors in Anthem by Ayn Rand?

"Anthem (1938) is a science fiction novelette of a future primitive society in which the word "I" is forbidden. Rand's point in this work is that the individualism which had built a complex technological civilization has been smothered by collectivism."

Ayn Rand’s Anthem is a drama about a society in which there is no individual ego.  Everyone is given a label on a metal band.  They are given titles like Liberty 5-3000 and Equality 7-2521.  Equality 7-2521 is the protagonist of the drama and is the character that Rand uses to promote the concept of the individual against altruism.  The whole story of Anthem is a metaphor.  The society is a complete socialistic and altruistic society.  Every department within the society is given labels.  One specific example is the Home of the Useless where the Old Ones live.

“At forty, they are sent to the Home of...

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the Useless, where the Old Ones live. The Old Ones do not work, for the State takes care of them.” chapter 1.

One special metaphor Rand uses is when Equality is watching  Liberty 5-3000 plant seeds in the fields.  He says, “the earth was a beggar under their feet.” (chapter 2), meaning that she was so special and so beautiful that even the ground would beg to have her walk on it.  She is different like him and he knows this as soon as he sees her.   
Another telling metaphor in the drama is when Equality has finally discovered the meaning of the word I.  He writes, “I need no warrant for being, and no word of sanction upon my being. I am the warrant and the sanction.” chapter 11 Anthem.

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Some motifs that are found in Anthem by Ayn Rand are Fear, Uniformity, and Naming.

  • Fear

In many ways control over the society is exerted by the presence of fear. The Street Sweepers with whom Equality 7-2521 works are so fearful that they do not even speak to each other at dinner or when they are at home. There is no need for any concern that these workers will do anything that they should not because fear prevents them from acting.

When Equality is caught with his light bulb, he begs the authorities to take it and use it; he is not afraid of punishment.  At the end of the narrative, Equality has built his house with the Golden One and he is willing to die to defend it. He has achieved individuality because he will protect what is his. 

In Chapter 2, the narrator tells of those who utter the forbidden word. They are those who know no fear:

The Transgressor were young and tall. They had hair of gold and eyes blue as morning. They walked to the pyre, and their step did not falter. And of all the faces on that square, of all the faces which shrieked and screamed and spat curses upon them, theirs was the calmest and the happiest face.

  • Uniformity

Without form, nothing can be individual or different, so when Equality is measured taller that others, he is reprimanded. The Council of Vocations and the World Council of Scholars are all shapeless. In the previous citation, the Transgressors, who are burned as heretics, are described as "tall," and they are distinctive from the others.

  • Naming

In the society of Anthem, people are given the names of qualities and quantities: Liberty 3000, Equality7-2521, Solidarity 9-6347, Fraternity2-5503, and so forth. When Equality and Golden One build their house in the last chapter, having read of Adam in the Bible, who had the power to name the creatures, he decides that his name should be Prometheus and she be Gaea, after a goddess.

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Names are important symbols in this novella. Of course, the deliberate erasure of individualism in this dystopian culture is symbolized by humans being assigned numbers rather than names. Therefore, Equality 7-2521 shows his subversive tendencies when he names the young woman he loves the Golden One. This describes her golden hair, but also becomes a symbol of the hope of a better, more golden future that she represents to Equality.

The names the two protagonists take after they escape are also symbolic. Equality 7-2521 becomes Prometheus, and the Golden One becomes Gaea. Just taking names symbolizes the twosome's rejection of the mass conformity of their old culture, but the names themselves have symbolic resonance. Prometheus, a figure in Greek mythology, was punished by the gods for bringing fire to mankind. This name therefore symbolizes Equality's attempts, which will continue to bring the light of knowledge to humans. Gaea, a Greek goddess, was the mother of the earth. Since the Golden One is pregnant at the end of the novella, we can assume she will be the mother of a new kind of humans who will achieve greatness as people did in the past.

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When Equality 7-2521 begins his narrative, he refers to both the light of a single candle and how alone he is in his tunnel.  "We are alone here under the earth," he says.  Further, "it is strange" to him to see only his two legs in front of him and the shadow of his one head on the wall.  Thus, the single candle becomes associated, symbolically, with his solitude and singular thoughtfulness.  In fact, he has stolen the candle from the building where he lives so that he can do his "secret . . . evil . . . precious work" by its light—connecting it to the work he does all alone.  Moreover, his box of light, with which he has rediscovered electricity, symbolizes his awakening and its personal, individual nature.  

The narrator also mentions the "iron bracelet which all men wear on their left wrists with their names upon it."  The metal is iron, a material we might recall as being quite strong and often the metal used to shackle slaves or prisoners. This seems to symbolize Equality's status as a virtual slave to his society.  He has little freedom to make choices, and he has been given a state-sanctioned name with which he has been labeled.  This iron label might make us recall both the treatment enslaved peoples have borne as well as the treatment of Jews during the Holocaust when they were labeled and marked by numbers.

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The symbolism in Ayn Rand's Anthem revolves primarily around language and literature. The narrator only uses plural pronouns, such as "we," and "us," indicating that the singular personal pronouns of "me" and "I " are unknown to this population. This limited vocabulary symbolically reflects the limited political and social freedoms individuals in this society experience. In addition, there is a lot of physical symbolism in the story. The narrator writes from within a dark tunnel, reflecting the political and cultural darkness of his society. Rand is echoing Plato's allegory of the cave: the man who resides mostly in the tunnel assumes that his own ignorance is universal. The narrator's ignorance is cured when he finds and reads numerous old books and documents, including the U.S. declaration of Independence and several Greek myths. After this, he leaves the tunnel. This departure represents his exit from a life of ignorance and oppression.

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Metonymy is the substitution of one word for another with which it is closely associated. For example, one could say that the orders came directly from the White House in order to indicate that the president gave orders; the phrase White House is substituted for the word president. In chapter 2, Equality 7-2521 describes seeing Liberty 5-3000. He says,

The women who have been assigned to work the soil live in the Homes of the Peasants beyond the City.

In this case, the word soil is used to describe not only the land but also the plants that grow from it. Liberty 5-3000 plows the earth, sowing seeds that will grow into crops that help to feed the community.

Equality 7-2521 says that his group of street sweepers is to clean the road that goes past the fields and the Home of the Peasants, and he loves this time because he hopes that he will see Liberty 5-3000. He says that, on each day after the first,

we knew the illness of waiting for our hour on the northern road.

This does not mean that the street sweepers are to spend exactly one hour cleaning this road, but Equality 7-2521 uses the word hour to mean his time on this road. We often measure time by hours, and so these words are closely related.

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Metonymy involves using a word or concept associated with something instead of the thing itself. An example is "suit" for "business executive." An example in Anthem is the following from Chapter 1: "It is as if we were speaking alone to no ears but our own." In this case, "ears" comes to stand for the entire human being who the narrator, Equality 7-2521, is speaking to. Another example from Chapter 1 is the following: "We think there are mysteries in the sky and under the water and in the plants that grow." In this example, "the sky" stands for more than just the sky but represents the entire heavens, and the water represents the seas; the plants represent the entire natural world of flora and fauna. A final example from Chapter 1 is "no eyes can see us as we crawl under our seat and under the cloth of the tent." In this example, "eyes" stand for the ability of other people to see the narrator. 

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What are some allusions in Anthem?

Another allusion in the novel Anthem is seen with Liberty, the girl Equality finds in the woods upon his escape from the society. He first meets Liberty as she is spreading seeds in a field while he is sweeping a nearby street. Their eyes lock, and they instantly fall in love. Equality takes Liberty with him to set up a new society, and he renames her Gaea. Gaea was a Greek goddess who represented Mother Earth. This shows a direct connection between Liberty's job of planting seeds and Mother Earth. Gaea also created the universe and gave birth to the first humans. It's important to note that Gaea is pregnant early on in this new society. She will be the one to start the new society as the first mother.

The new society Equality and Liberty form is an allusion to a democracy where individual rights are cherished and preserved by the people. 

The entire novel alludes to a time in the past where society is more advanced with cars, electricity, etc.  A Great War is mentioned and The Great Burning is an event where all books and knowledge is destroyed. Although there is no real reference to an actual event, Ayn Rand is trying to make us understand what could happen if we lived in a "collective," communistic society.  

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The book Anthem by Ayn Rand has many allusions to Prometheus giving light to save humanity. Anthem is narrated by Equality 7-2521, who lives in a future devoid of individualism and modern technology like electricity. Equality 7-2521 rediscovers electricity and creates a light bulb, thus creating light much like Prometheus delivered fire to mankind. For his invention of light and electricity the council punishes him and sends him to the palace of corrective detention. The allusions persist with Equality renaming himself Prometheus.   Other allusions in Anthem are references to hymns.  Equality narrates “Then we sing hymns, the Hymn of Brotherhood, and the Hymn of Equality, and the Hymn of the Collective Spirit."

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One of the allusions used by Ayn Rand in the Anthem is "Saint of the pyre." It is used with reference to those who had understood the concept of a self identity and attempted to enlighten others by telling them about it. This was a grave transgression and was always punished by the Councils setting the offenders on fire in view of all.

There was no pain in their eyes and no knowledge of the agony of their body. There was only joy in them, and pride, a pride holier than it is fit for human pride to be...

What—even if we have to burn for it like the Saint of the pyre—what is the Unspeakable Word?

Another instance that I find where a very important point has been made with an allusion is when Equality is speaking with the Golden One about the importance of being able to differentiate oneself from others and refers to Prometheus stealing fire from the Gods and giving it to humans.

He took the light of the gods and brought it to men, and he taught men to be gods. And he suffered for his deed as all bearers of light must suffer.

How this taught men to be gods leaves no doubt about how powerful the concept of an ego is, and how a self-identity gives people an immense power which is in ways equivalent to that of the Gods.

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What is a simile in Anthem?

Simile: an example of figurative language in which a comparison is made between two different things using "like" or "as." 

Equality 7-2521 uses similes to describe The Golden One. Given that he perceives her as "not like the others," he must resort to methods of description that go beyond the normal prescriptions of grammar common to his society's way of speaking. Note that the very language of Equality's society is representative of their collectivist culture which has outlawed individualism. Thus, when he waxes poetic, with metaphor and simile, he is attempting to be more of an individual and thereby to describe The Golden One as an individual - which she must be, set apart, since she is "not like the others." 

And the drops of water falling from their hands, as they raised the water to their lips, were like sparks of fire in the sun. 

The drops of water, falling from the Golden One's hands, sparkle like the sun, like "gold." Everything about her shines - from his perspective. Thus, she stands out from the others, brighter. His awakening of himself as an individual is complemented by his awakening of The Golden One as an individual as well. 

Equality describes his light: 

Only the glass box in our arms is like a living heart that gives us strength. 

Equality uses a simile to describe the glass box (the light) he created. Note the continuing use of light imagery - with the light itself (glass box) and The Golden One. The image of light suggests an "enlightenment," and/or an "illumination" in the senses of clarifying and explaining. The energy of the glass box is compared to a heart: to life itself. 

Again, Equality uses similes to describe The Golden One, still with images of light: 

The skin of their arms is like a blue mist, but their shoulders are white and glowing, as if the light fell not from above, but rose from under their skin. We watch the leaf which has fallen upon their shoulder, and it lies at the curve of their neck, and a drop of dew glistens upon it like a jewel. 

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It is curious that the narrator of this dystopian novella, Anthem, looks for similarities and uses comparisons of things as he begins to break from his conformity to society into an individual. For, ironically, in this discovery of comparisons, Equality 7-2521 breaks from his collectivity. Still, he who is taller than the others, has always had thoughts and wishes that have been forbidden; he has always been different from others.  

Because of this latent proclivity to be individualistic, Equality 7-2521 has been put in other places, places where his brain is to be trained, but always he thinks more and better than others. After he is made a Street Sweeper as a punishment, he discovers an iron grid over a hole and secretly descends into it, the place from the Unmentionable Times when there was learning. 

When Equality 7-2521 discovers more new things, he describes them with figurative language. One of these is a woman named Liberty 5-3000. In Part II, Equality 7-2521 describes a street that he and the other sweepers must keep clean. In his description there are two similes describing the area near the street:

The fields are black and ploughed, and they lie like a great fan before us with their furrows gathered in some hand beyond the sky, spreading forth from that hand, opening wide apart as theycome toward us, like black pleats that sparkle with thin, green spangles.

As an indication of his developed thought processes, there is yet another simile following this one:

Women work in the fields, and their white tunics in the wind arelike the wings of sea gulls beating over the black soil.

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Similes are a type of figurative language that compares unlike things, and can create mood.

A simile is a comparison using like or as.  It is an example of figurative language.  It adds beauty, mystery, and meaning to work.  Authors use similes to let you know what a character is thinking, and to add symbolism to their work.  Similes are also perfect for creating mood, because they can perfectly capture emotions.  Consider the following simile.

The sky is like a black sieve pierced by silver drops that tremble, ready to burst through. (Ch. 1)

This is a beautiful simile.  It compares the sky to not only a sieve, but a black sieve!   Don’t you just feel the raw pressure and frustration here, but also the potential?  There is both oppression and beauty in this statement.  We are being held down, but we feel like we are going to get out soon.  This is exactly the atmosphere Rand is setting up in her dystopic world, where everything is collective and there is no individuality.

Here is another example of the other kind of simile, the one that uses “as.”

And then we saw iron rings as steps leading down a shaft into a darkness without bottom. (Ch. 1)

Here, you can see the potential I spoke of earlier.  It is forbidden to explore the unknown of the whole.  Yet the council does not know what is in the whole.  There is so much that might be there.  We might get in trouble for going there.  Yet we are so suppressed in our perfect collectivist world.  We long to be individuals, to make our own choices.

Similes give the reader a chance to express.  They make an emotional impact in the reader, and allow the author to create the mood that captures the characters.

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