Due Friday, October 26th - "Anthem" and "Inequality for All"

Overview: We have come to the end of our initial analysis of Ayn Rand’s cautionary tale, Anthem as well as Robert Reich’s documentary Inequality of All. Each warns its audience of a problem staring them in the face, and how they are manipulated by a system. Ironically, both have traditionally been aligned with opposite sides of the political spectrum, Reich as a Democrat and Rand as a Republican. However, let’s look beyond party politics and think for ourselves. Both champion individual thought and reason. Both believe we need to go beyond groupthink and look at the facts. Thinking for yourself is key. Do not passively believe what is fed by the government, media outlets, school, peers, or other forms of hearsay. Even the work we did in this unit. Do not take my word. Study. Explore.

Directions: Finish reading Anthem by Ayn Rand and viewing Inequality for All. Next, answer ALL questions below in a blog response.  These study questions require your opinion, so it will be interesting to see the various ways your classmates view the material.  As always, use direct quotations in your response and return to the blog, read, and respond to your fellow classmates.


Chs. XI and XII

1. "I am. I think. I will" What is the significance of those words to you? Explain fully.

2. Explain what Equality means by the creed of corruption?

3. What did Equality learn about slavery and freedom? Why did men give up their freedom once they earned it?

4. Discuss any three of the precepts which Equality adopts as his guide to life? Do you see any similarity between them and the thoughts of Robert Reich in Inequality for All? Explore. You may have to write an essay comparing the two. 😏

5. Now that you finished both works, what kind of action could you take in order to be an authentic self? To make an impact on the economic crisis?  Again, who knows if this will be part of your final essay? 😉

Due Tuesday, October 23rd - "Anthem" Chs. VII-X (pages 68-93)

Overview: In this following section, Equality-2527 is about to share his discovery with the Home of the Scholars. You intimated to me in a previous class discussion that you do not think this will go over well. Much like the protagonist from “Allegory of a Cave,” there is a desire for the enlightened (or unconquered) to return to the prisoners and share the light of truth. Keep in mind what we learned from Inequality for All. Reich continues to enter the cave with the answers, but those in power wish to keep their shadows, their “candles” as the pinnacle of achievement. How will things turn out for Equality-2527?

Directions: Please read and review parts VII - X of Anthem by Ayn Rand, pages 68-93. Next, compose a blog response using four of the questions below (one for each chapter) as a guide and four direct quotations (one for each question/chapter) in your response. There are fewer questions, but the answers will vary depending on your personal opinions.  Remember to read each other’s comments and have a discussion.  I look forward to your responses.

Ch. VII

• Why does Equality say, " We are old now, yet we were young this morning . . .?" 
• When Ayn Rand writes, "for their eyes were still, and small, and evil," what does she really mean? How do you know this? 

Ch. VIII

• What does Equality discover in the Forest, and why is he not concerned about being one of the Damned? 

Ch. IX

• Explain the importance of the following statement: "There is no danger in solitude." 

Ch. X

• What discovery do they find left over from the Unmentionable Times, and why does he keep writing?

Part II: Inequality for All

Overview:  We recently viewed the first part of the documentary, Inequality for All in which Robert Reich addresses this issue from the economic viewpoint and explains how it impacts all Americans.  You expressed your opening views on the film and made comparisons to Ayn Rand’s Anthem.

Directions:  Today, we will continue watching Inequality for All.  While you watch, please take notes.  In this blog space, jot down your continuing questions and impressions in three (3) paragraphs using direct evidence from the documentary.  Please use the list of questions from Robert Reich's website to help us begin our discussion.

Study Questions

• Describe  a  moment  from this viewing section of  Inequality for All that  is  really  sticking  with  you  –  maybe  you  found  it  particularly  inspiring  or  particularly  troubling.    What  was  it  about  that  moment  that  is  so  memorable?

• Reich  says,  “The  question  is  not  inequality  per  se;  the  question  is,  when  does  inequality  become  a  problem?”  In  your  own  words,  when  do  you  think  inequality  becomes  a  problem?  Do you see a problem now?  Explain how you see it around your community.

• Reich  asks,  “Why  didn’t  the  nation  respond  to  the  Great  Regression  that  started  around  1980?  Why  didn’t  we  take  bold  steps  to  ensure  that  the  economy  would  continue  to  work  for  just  about  everyone?”  What  bold  steps  do  you  think  we  need  now?  What could you do?

Visit the website

http://inequalityforall.com/

Due Monday, October 15th - "Anthem" Ch. III - VI (pages 52-67)

Overview: In this following section, Equality-2527 makes an amazing discovery. Time alone allowed him to think, be creative, and now he wants to share his genius with society. Much like the protagonist from “The Allegory of a Cave” Equality found enlightenment. He stared directly into the sun, the symbolic light of truth. Now he will venture back into the cave (which ironically, is the other way around in the novel, as he leaves the cave to visit the council). Taking into account what we learned from Plato’s allegory, how do you think the elders will respond to his discovery? How will this impact Equality-2527?

Directions: Please read and review parts III-VI of Anthem by Ayn Rand, pages 52-67. Next, compose a blog response using four of the questions below (one for each chapter) as a guide and four direct quotations (one for each question/chapter) in your response. Remember to read each other’s comments and have a discussion. Note: If you see a number of your classmates writing about a particular question, please choose a different one. Let’s try to cover everything as a class! I look forward to your responses.


Ch III.

• What has Equality discovered and what has he learned from it? 
• Why does Equality think that the Council of Scholars is blind? 
• A euphemism is defined as "the substitution of an agreeable or inoffensive expression for one that may offend or suggest something unpleasant; also : the expression so substituted" For example, Equality is not assigned a job; he is given a "Life Mandate". What other euphemisms have you discovered in this book? 

Ch. IV.

• What name has Equality given to Liberty? Why? 
• What name has Liberty given to Equality? Do you think that the name is appropriate? Why or why not? 
• What is Liberty's Life Mandate? 

Ch. V.

• What did Equality intend to do with his discovery? 
• What is the World Council of Scholars and why is it significant? 
• Why now does Equality feel the need to guard his tunnel? 
• Why does Equality want, for the first time, to know what he looks like? 

Ch. VI

• Why was Equality put in the Palace of Corrective Detention? 
• How was he treated in the Palace? 
• Why was he able to escape from the Palace, and why was it suddenly necessary to escape? 
• Why did Equality not try to escape earlier? 
• In this chapter, how does Equality refer to the pages that he has been writing?

Part I: Inequality for All

Overview:  We have been reading a novel about a man named Equality-2527.  If Ayn Rand's novel, Anthem is a cautionary tale about the dangers of conformity and government control, how do we take action in today's society?  In his documentary, Inequality for All Robert Reich addresses this issue from the economic viewpoint and explains how it impacts all Americans.

Directions:  Today, we will begin watching Inequality for All.  While you watch, please take notes.  In this blog space, jot down your initial questions and impressions in Three (3) paragraphs using direct evidence from the documentary.  Please use the list of questions from Robert Reich's website to help us begin our discussion. 

Study Questions

1)  Describe a moment from the film really sticking with you – maybe you found it particularly inspiring or particularly troubling. What was it about that moment that is so memorable?

2)  Imagine going home and telling a friend about this film. What would you say?

3)  What parts of the film were surprising or made you sit back and say, “Hmmm, I need to think more about that? Or, “Wow, I never thought about that.”

Visit the webiste:

http://inequalityforall.com/

View this brief explanation about the economic structure in America, which is similar to Reich's. 

Due Tuesday, October 9th - "Anthem" by Ayn Rand - Part II (pages 38-51)

Overview: Many of you asked, “Where are the women in this society?" You will meet them in part II. Be thinking about the role of women in this society and make connections to the role of women in
our society and around the world today.

Directions: Please read and review part II of Anthem by Ayn Rand, pages 38-51. Next, compose a blog response using at 2-3 of the questions below as a guide and 2-3 direct quotations in your response. Remember to read each other’s comments and have a discussion. Note: If you see a number of your classmates writing about a particular question, please choose a different one. Lets try to cover everything as a class! I look forward to your responses.

• What does Equality mean when he says, "They"? 

• Who is Liberty and what does she do? 

• What is a Transgression of Preference? How did Equality commit such a transgression or transgressions? 

• What is the Time of Mating? Why does Equality think of being sent to the Palace of Mating as being a "shameful matter"? 

• How are children raised in Equality's society? 

• Why doesn't Liberty want Equality to be one of her brothers? 

• Why does Equality care about Liberty's age?  

• What is wrong with Equality's brothers? 

• Why is Equality afraid of the Uncharted Forest? 

• What are the Unmentionable Times? 

• What is the punishment for speaking the Unspeakable Word? 

Designer DNA

Overview:  In Anthem, we witness a society in which the government wishes to control its population by training its citizens from birth.  What if they could control us before birth?  The novel is science fiction, but the following documentary is not.

Directions:  View the brief documentary Designer DNA from Explained.  Compose a blog response where you discuss: 1)  Direct parallels to Anthem and 2) Do you feel the benefits are worth the risks?  Why or why not?  Please feel free to explore this issue.  I look forward to your responses.