1. Intro: English I Honors
Anthem

2. Basic Info Author: Ayn Rand Published in 1938
A dystopian fiction novel
Novels of comparison: 1984, The Giver, The Hunger Games
Also, the short story “Harrison Bergeron”

3. Author Info Born Feb. 2, 1905 1st novel=We the Living
Other famous works include: The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged

4. The book…
tells the story of one man's rebellion against a totalitarian society
takes place in some unspecified future time and place in which freedom and individual rights have been obliterated
Collectivism — the political philosophy holding that an individual exists solely to serve society— is dominant and has led to the establishment of a global dictatorship of the Fascist /Communist variety.

5. Ayn Rand’s Philosophy Objectivism:
Reality exists as an objective absolute—facts are facts, independent of man’s feelings, wishes, hopes or fears.
Reason (the faculty which identifies and integrates the material provided by man’s senses) is man’s only means of perceiving reality, his only source of knowledge, his only guide to action, and his basic means of survival.

6. Objectivism (cont’d)
Man is an end in himself, not the means to the ends of others. He must exist for his own sake…The pursuit of his own happiness is the highest moral purpose of his life. (OPPOSITE of Collectivism)
The ideal political-economic system is capitalism. It is a system where men deal with one another, not as victims and executioners, nor as masters and slaves, but as traders, by free, voluntary exchange to mutual benefit. It is a system where no man may obtain anything from others by use of physical force, and no man may use physical force against others. The government acts only as a policeman that protects man’s rights.

7. Ayn Rand Quote
“I worship individuals for their highest possibilities as individuals, and I loathe humanity, for its failure to live up to these possibilities.”
Write a paragraph response in which you interpret and explore the meaning of this quote. Be prepared to share/discuss.