care of them. They sit in the sun in summer and they sit by the fire in winter. They do not speak often, for they are weary. The Old Ones know that they are soon to die. When a miracle happens and some live to be forty-five, they are the Ancient Ones, and children stare at them when passing by the Home of the Useless. Such is to be our life, as that of all our brothers and of the brothers who came before us.

This is the unproductive and unsatisfying existence of man in this world: he is born, he suffers, and then he dies. 

The first reason for such a short life expectancy is that there is nothing to live for in this world. The Old Ones have already lived an unfulfilling life, and being in the Home of the Useless certainly does not enhance their lives. With nothing to look forward to, they might as well die.

Another reason is that the Old Ones are not allowed to be productive (hence the name of their institution, the Home of the Useless). It is true that there is little in this world for them to do that does not involve manual labor, so the options are limited; however, having something, anything to do would automatically increase their will to live.

Finally, they are broken men and women by the time they reach forty. They are broken in every way, as they have been forced to do what is required with no regard for their own desires--if they still have them. While their bodies are taken care of and they are able to sit in relative comfort, they have nothing in their spirits which brings them joy. Their bodies are fed but their souls are starving. 

The major point of this society's existence is for all men to work for the benefit of all mankind. Work-this doesn't mean to play or to relax. Every minute of a person's life in the society in which Equality is born is planned out from the day s/he is born to the day s/he dies. The only time a person is allowed to rest is after the age of 40. The people are driven to work out of a united desire to be useful to the society. As seen throughout the story, though, they also work out of fear of what might happen if they don't obey the rules to work and to conform with society's demands and requirements. By the time a person is 40, Equality explains that "at forty, they are worn out. At forty, they are sent to the Home of the Useless, where the Old Ones live. The Old Ones do not work. . . They do not speak often, for they are weary. The Old Ones know that they are soon to die" (28). Thus, it can be inferred from words like "worn out" and "weary" that the toll placed on their bodies in this society may be ruthless; the stress of their lives must be highly demanding as they work every day and live under fear.

Furthermore, living a life for someone else cannot be that satisfying. Without families or the opportunities to seek after one's dreams would be sad and lifeless. Who would want to continue for longer than needed if life didn't represent one's own choices and desires? Equality's society takes choice away from the individual. If an individual cannot choose to live as s/he sees fit, and in the pursuit of happiness, then there's no reason to live. Equality doesn't say this in the book because he doesn't know any better until the very end of the story. By that point, he's just realizing the beauty of life as seen through taking risks when making choices. He chooses to be with Liberty because of the joy it brings him, but he also must face the repercussions of that choice; one being the fact that he cannot live within that society and be with her at the same time. He must leave the society if he wants to stay with her. Also at the end of the book, they are expecting a baby, which is another aspect of life that was denied them.

People must be able to make their own choices in life; if not, then life isn't worth living. It can be inferred by the fact that people only live to be 40-45 that a person really cannot thrive in a society such as this due to the limitation of free will and the stress placed upon them that work is the only meaning of a person's life.

The future society portrayed by Ayn Rand in Anthem is actually a society based on humankind's past. Essentially, the setting she creates is one of humankind before all the technological and ideological advances that had been made when Rand wrote the text in the twentieth century - essentially the Dark Ages placed in the future.

So - just like in the Dark Ages - humans do not live as long in Anthem's society as they do now because they do not have the advances in medicine, safety, diet, etc. that we have now.

In addition, there is something to be said about the mental health of the people living in a Dark Age. In chapter two, Equality 7-2521 describes his brethren: "There are Fraternity 2-5503, a quiet boy with wise, kind eyes, who cry suddenly, without reason, in the midst of day or night, and their body shakes with sobs they cannot explain. There are Solidarity 9-6347, who are a bright youth, without fear in the day; but they scream in their sleep...'Help us!' 'Help us!'" Any modern psychologist would say these men suffer from severe untreated depression, which would greatly shorten a person's life if left untreated.

Finally, at the age of forty, these people are forced to go to the Home of the Useless. "They sit in the sun in summer and they sit by the fire in winter." What person wouldn't take that life over the life of a workhorse? And once there, what person wouldn't slowly pass into death with nothing to do but remember a life of work and sadness?

In the novel, Anthem, the life expectancy for the citizens in this society is around 40, and when old, they are sent to the Home of the Useless to live out their pitiful lives.  This society oppresses its people so much that there is very little will to live. Equality sees this among his brothers who cry at night and are fearful.  There is no individuality and no way to express one’s feelings in this dystopian society.  The society also works its citizens to exhaustion.  Equality is a street sweeper, a job that restricts his intellectual abilities and keeps him equal to everyone else.  There is no happiness or joy, and the only things the citizens have to live for are their fellow brothers.  Imagine not being able to fall in love or question or learn.  Your life is scheduled out with work and nightly meetings, and the government makes all the decisions for you in your life.

Life in this society is cruel and repressive because of the lack of self-expression.  It is so oppressive that it breaks the spirits of its people at a young age, and the desire to live diminishes, and you are considered “useless” and sent away to die.

In chapter one of Rand'sAnthem, most of the society's structure is laid out for the reader by the main character. It is interesting that the Home of the Useless is for those who are tired at age 40 and that only the more fortunate live there until 45. Nothing more is said about the reasons why this is. Does the government euthanize people after 45 or are people really that exhausted that they simply keel over at that time? Those questions are left open-ended for the reader to imagine because Equality's story never ventures into that area of society. For a society like the one depicted in the novel, however, one could argue that population control was important to them and upholding such a societal structure.