Anthem Book Summary: Introduction

I found a great book with various new philosophical ideas in it. Called Anthem by Ayn Rand, I will throughout reading the book post chapter summaries each week. Showcasing the different perspectives and situations that occur within the book.

Introduction

      In Ayn Rand's "Anthem", the introduction discusses how and why she wrote this book. Over the years of when she wrote it in 1938, Anthem has become an American classic. Ego was to be the original title for the book; it would have been a simple title that would be used with its exact meaning. The author explains, " I did not mean a symbol of self-but specifically and actually Man's Self." She wanted the title to express man's values and instinctive attributes. It keeps with her characteristics with many of her characters.

      While she was writing Anthem she was working on her novel, Fountainhead. These two books share similar plots, and they share similar ethic points. She explained Anthem as "the preliminary sketches which artists draw for their future big canvases." Using an idea that she received from childhood; never assuming that she would use the idea as a novel.

      When asked to state her own philosophy for publicity she states, "To make my life a reason unto itself. I know what I want up to the age of two hundred. Know what you want in life and go after it. I worship individuals for their highest possibilities as individuals, and I loathe humanity, for its failure to live up to these possibilities..." What I learned and took away from this introduction about the author was about her characteristic. Ayn Rand is not afraid to share her knowledge.  I respect how she always spoke very forward, "without purple adjectives", her honesty always came out throughout her writing.

Anthem (Caldwell, Idaho: Caxton,1946) Centennial ed., New York: Signet, 1961.