A Utopian View on Collectivism

Independent Study Project:

A Utopian View on Collectivism

070146691

Mr. Sivanesan

2010-01-07

ENG4U

It is said in the United States Declaration of Independence that "all men are created equal, and are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights including Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness" (Jefferson). What Thomas Jefferson meant in the creation of this Declaration was that all men should be provided with an equal opportunity to succeed in life. However, many have mistaken this equality for equal amount. Many believe that only true equality can exist when everyone does the same work, wears the same things, and even lives the same lifestyle. A hundred years ago, due to the unequal nature of human society, one could easily see the need for this type of equality. Through Marxist lenses, the history of mankind has always been about a Bourgeoisie minority exploiting a Proletariat majority.

English: Ayn Rand's sign. Sicilianu: Signature de ...

Atlas sculpture, New York City, by sculptor Lee La...

Ayn Rand

Individualistic societies represented by Capitalism created disparity and caused alienation amongst their citizens. Thus, this false definition of equality led to the conception of a Collectivist classless society known as Communism. However, time and time again, artificial attempts to implement this false equality in nations have so far been unsuccessful. From this, we learn that the over-reliance of Collectivism places many burdens on a society. As explained in their respective biographies, both authors Ayn Rand and Yevgeny Zamyatin have "realized [this] fault of Marxist Socialism through their own life experiences in Soviet Russia" (Gimpelevich), and sought to base their literature upon it. To emphasize their contempt of collectivism, both authors place the protagonists of Anthem and We in two extremely Collectivist worlds in order to portray the consequences and implications of such societies. In a way, their views can be...