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What are the symbols in the book "Anthem"?
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In "Anthem," symbols include light, representing knowledge, with electricity and the light bulb contrasting societal ignorance symbolized by candles. The Uncharted Forest symbolizes the unknown and the potential for self-discovery. Equality renames himself Prometheus, signifying his role in bringing enlightenment, akin to the Greek god. Liberty, renamed Gaea, symbolizes new beginnings and the potential for creating a new society. The house in the forest represents individuality and marriage, forbidden in their old world.
Other symbols not yet mentioned are, first, the name Equality 7-2521 gives his female beloved: Gaea. Gaea was mother of the earth, and this new name symbolizes how, through Gaea, Prometheus (Equality 7-2521) can start a new race of individuals who can pursue excellence and not be held back by groupthink.
The single-family house they find in the forest is a symbol of marriage, which is forbidden in their old world because it shows a preference for one single individual. The house is filled with light, symbolizing their glorious new lives in a new place:
Never had we seen rooms so full of light. The sun's ray's danced upon colors, colors, and more colors than we thought possible . . .
The house is filled with mirrors , which symbolize individualism. They are forbidden in the old society. Here, in the house, Prometheus and Gaea can see themselves...
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as distinct individuals, not part of a mass. They can gain self-knowledge.
There are several symbols in the novel, Anthem, by Ayn Rand. Here is a list of some of the dominant ones:
Light: Light symbolizes knowledge, and it’s no accident that Equality discovers electricity and the light bulb in the sewers of the Unmentionable Times. He takes the light to the Home of the Scholars to share his discovery, and he is thrown in jail. The candles the society uses for light symbolizes ignorance while the light bulb symbolizes knowledge.
Liberty: Equality first sees Liberty when he is sweeping the streets, and she is planting seeds in a nearby field. Later, Liberty takes the name Gaea, the Greek god of Mother Earth. She also becomes pregnant with Equality’s baby; and therefore, she is the first “Eve” of the new society they will form together.
The Uncharted Forest: The Uncharted Forest where Equality and Liberty go to escape the dystopian society represents the unknown and the future that lies ahead for them. They were told their entire lives that the Uncharted Forest was a place of danger where no one who entered it ever escaped. It is in the forest that they find their true selves and start their new society. This “finding oneself in nature” is also a philosophy of the Transcendentalists of the early 1800’s.
Prometheus: Equality renames himself Prometheus after learning that Prometheus, a Greek god, brought fire to humans. Just like the light that Equality found, Prometheus also brought the knowledge of light to man.