Anthem

اگر به رمان های دیستوپیایی علاقه دارید بخونیدش حجمش کمه میشه تو چند ساعت خوند. امتیاز من ۳/۵

Witless, styleless, and self-righteous. "1984" and "A Brave New World" are far more effective books. Although I can't say I agree that individualism is more important than collectivism, especially when people come together as a whole to do things positive in this world.

First off, let me say this: SHAME ON YOU AMAZON! You have prohibited a great cover of this novel from showing here on goodreads. The cover I speak of looks like this: five ghostly apparitions stand forlornly, one is reaching toward a light that looks as if it is an exploding star; they all have chains on their wrists; the far right figure, the only woman, is tenderly reaching for the hand of the man trying to grasp the light; a pitch black background acts as a backdrop. It is the perfect cover for this novel. It tells so much without revealing anything (that is unless you have read the novel). So I say again: SHAME ON YOU AMAZON.

Okay, now on to the book.

ANTHEM by Ayn Rand is a novel set in a far-off post apocalyptic future, in a world where technology has been relegated into the land of myth and fancy. People of this world are no longer given birth names; they are given a name according to the cohort they were born into. It is a world where the individual is less than the collective.

This is the story of Equality 7-2521. In the beginning, they (he) are destined to be great thinkers. No other cohort in history has thought the way they (he) do(es). But this is not to be. Equality 7-2521 is given the job of Street Sweeper by the Council of Vocations. It is this council that determines what is essential for the collective at the moment. Equality 7-2521 does a grand job of keeping the streets clean. It is not until they (he) comes across Liberty 5-3000, renamed the Golden One, that Equality 7-2521 begins to think outside of the proverbial collective box. Later, when Equality 7-2521 discovers a secret cave (which in reality is an abandoned subway tunnel) does the meaning of individuality actually begin to take root in their (his) head. While stealing away to this “secret place” Equality 7-2521 begins to experiment with copper wires, eventually making an apparatus that conducts electricity. Equality 7-2521 is overwhelmed by this discovery, and wants to share it with the World Council of Scholars. But before they (he) can do that, it is discovered that they (he) is not in at curfew. Equality 7-2521 is taken away to the Palace of Corrective Detention where they (he) are beaten and tortured and interrogated. Equality 7-2521 never talks, not so much as a whisper. When they (he) decide to escape, the morning of the meeting for the World Council of Scholars, they (he) bring the electrical apparatus. When shown the device, the members of the World Council of Scholars shirk back from it in fear. When Equality 7-2521 offers to give the council this gift, they scoff at him and berate them (him) for thinking not of the brotherhood but of only them(self). Equality 7-2521 refuses to be detained again and runs off into the Uncharted Forest with the device, there they (he) wander aimlessly, and await the moment a beast tears them to shreds. But it is not a beast that confronts them (him); it is the Golden One that finds them (him). Together, Equality 7-2521 and the Golden One go on a journey further into the Uncharted Forrest. When they happen to come across an old cabin, they investigate the relics left behind from the Unimaginable Times, mainly books. It is at this moment that Equality 7-2521 goes from them to him. It is at this time that he begins to understand that “I” can be more powerful than “we”. With this new knowledge, Equality 7-2521 renames himself, Prometheus. It is also at this time that he gives the Golden One a new name, Gaea. It is at this time that first-person narration takes over. (The rest of the novel you will have to read for yourself.)

For this reader, the premise of this novel is intriguing. The setup and the style in which it is written allows for a fast paced story, packed with delicious nuggets of thought. And, to boot, Rand wrote this as a writing exercise while she was outlining ATLAS SHRUGGED. Now don’t get me wrong, I think Rand was a big sloppy bowl of crazy. But what she has written in ANTHEM is a testament of what people should do to keep their governments in check. Basically, Rand tells the reader to remember this: governments work for the people, not the other way around.

Alongside Yevgeny Zamyatin’s WE, ANTHEM is considered a classic within post apocalyptic literature. I’ve never read WE, but I will be certain to read it sooner than later. Is ANTHEM a good book? Sure. Is it a book worth reading eighty plus years after it was published? Yep. Does it have all the answers? Not even close. This is a book of ideas. Plot and characterization and setting are shadily written. Perhaps that is the genius of this brief 120 page novel. Perhaps Rand wanted the reader to fill in the gaps with their own struggles against their own government. Regardless, this is a quick read that any reader of science fiction, or any person interested in the struggle between individualism and collectivism should read. If anything, it should make you think.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

2020-10-08 I first read this book at the suggestion of a girl friend my freshman year in college. I liked it, but it was more extreme and too simple for what I preferred. I remember reading Barry Goldwater's book "Conscience of a Conservative" right around the same time and liking that better, since it actually got into the major political-economic issues of the day. I also preferred the non-fiction style for these kinds of issues, though I did see some value in this as well as Orwell's 1984 and Animal Farm.

Recently, I decided to read Anthem again (probably for the 3rd time) because it is on the list of books to be discussed in a potential Reading Group that I wanted to join. I had another several motivations too:
- I was given, not too long ago, a copy of a new Graphic Novel version of Anthem, and just read that a few days ago.
- I have seen parts of one or two screen adaptations of Anthem in the last few years.
- I have read a review of a somewhat recent (2019?) stage adaptation of Anthem.
- I have liked the works of Ayn Rand generally very much and rereading such a short book after many years seems pretty reasonable - and it sure worked out well with rereading 1984 a week or two ago.

Needless to say, the book did not disappoint. In fact, my previous rating here in Goodreads for the book was only 3 stars, which I just upgraded to 5!

More soon - I took some notes that I would like to share.

Some passages I liked:

p. 18 "You shall do what the Council of Vocations shall prescribe for you. For the Council of Vocations knows in its great wisdom where you are needed by your brother men, better than you can know it in your unworthy little minds. And if you are not needed by your brother men, there is no reason for you to burden the earth with your bodies." Sounds pretty Soviet Unionish, eh? Or maybe North Korean? Or Khmer Rouge Cambodian? Or Covid years American?

p. 19 "And we learned much from our Teachers. We learned that the earth is flat, and that the sun revolves around it which causes the day and night.... We learned how to bleed men to cure them of all ailments." Laughable, eh? Well, just 35 or so years ago, climate scientists were teaching that the earth was cooling so fast we were in danger of another ice age. Just 10 years or so ago we were hitting "peak oil" so the price was well over $100/barrel(bbl) and people thought we were running out. The price now is around $40/bbl (2020-10) $70 (2023-07-02, with much inflation since) and there is plenty of known reserves.

p. 29 "Everything which is not permitted is forbidden" - This is from the dystopian world in Anthem... but the parallels to today's world are too close for comfort - think Covid medical treatments!

p. 65 "We must not keep our secret (electric light) to ourselves, nor buried under the ground. We must bring it into the sight of all men." The naivete of the main character in thinking that the powers that be would welcome his revolutionary invention is a bit sad and reminded me of the main character in Ibsen's play "An Enemy of the People."

2023-07-02 edited with come Covid era updates.

Writing in the first person plural toward a central theme, Ayn Rand tests the reader's patience. I recommend Doris Lessing instead. Her wonky, awkward descriptive power is more attuned than Rand's. Rand has a tendency to produce a monotone. I was picturing THX 1138 the whole time. Naming characters with numbers was also a poor choice. If you were not a fan of her characters in Fountainhead or Atlas Shrugged, you won't care for them here either. A general icy tone of indifference to human empathy pervades her work. The worship of the ego is taken to laughable pinnacles.

The only good Ayn Rand book, mostly because it's over so quickly.

بیشتر 3.5 تا 4.
سرود رمانکی پادآرمانشهری از جنس رمان های 1984 و... بود. شاید بتونم تنها مشکل اصلی این روایت کوتاه رو همین شباهت بدونم که حداقل برای من، تکراری و یکم خسته کننده شده.

اما سرود چی داشت؟ لحن و نثر کوبنده. انگار یه طوفان تو سر آین رند بوده و جوری داستان رو نوشته که انگار خود نویسنده هم، عین شخصیت اصلی رمان، تحت تعقیب بوده موقع نوشتن این کتاب! اما در عین حال، نثر آین رند یه لطافت خاصی تو خودش داشت. با این حجم کم، آین رند دنیایی ساخته که توش «مَنیّت» از بین رفته و «ما»، اونو به لجن کشیده و قرن ها به عقب برده (یه چی تو مایه های سریال revolution) . این عقب رفتن تا حدی بوده که مردم پس از فاجعه‌ای، به دوران شمع و کشاورزی روی آوردن. چقدره که با خوندن همین رمان و فلسفه سرایی های نویسنده راجع به آزادی و «ما» و «من» و... یاد وضعیت اسفناکمون تو ایران خواهیم افتاد.

با خوندن «سرود» یاد رمان «میرا» خواهیم افتاد.

Wow. Since I have read all those negative reviews on Rand books, what I expected is a 1 or 2 stars novel. This proved me wrong. This was amazing - I am not the big fan of the ending (which is why I didn't give it 5 stars), but this really was amazing. Rating: 4.3 stars. One of the best dystopian books I have ever read.