Utopia vs. Dystopia

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Utopia vs. Dystopia

• Can you have one
• without the other?
• Can you? Really?

Tammy Gillmore Pre-AP English
10 Thematic Unit
Spring 2009
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What are the differences between

• Utopia

• Dystopia

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• Born in St. Petersburg, Russia

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(No Transcript)
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• In Stony Creek, CT, where her husband was working
  in summer stock productions and where she wrote
  Anthem (1937).

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• One of a series of photos taken in 1957 by
  Phyllis Cerf for the dust jacket of Atlas
  Shrugged.

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Timeline of Life
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Individualism

• Do not make the mistake of the ignorant who think
  that an individualist is a man who says Ill do
  as I please at everybody elses expense. An
  individualist is a man who recognizes the
  inalienable individual rights of manhis own and
  those of others.
• An individualist is a man who says I will not
  run anyones lifenor let anyone run mine. I will
  not rule nor be ruled. I will not be a master nor
  a slave. I will not sacrifice myself to
  anyonenor sacrifice anyone to myself.
• Textbook of Americanism, The Ayn Rand Column,
  84.

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Individualism

• Individualism regards manevery manas an
  independent, sovereign entity who possesses an
  inalienable right to his own life, a right
  derived from his nature as a rational being.
  Individualism holds that a civilized society, or
  any form of association, cooperation or peaceful
  coexistence among men, can be achieved only on
  the basis of the recognition of individual
  rightsand that a group, as such, has no rights
  other than the individual rights of its members.
• Racism, The Virtue of Selfishness, 129.

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Objectivism philosophy for living on earth

• See handout.

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Objectivism philosophy for living on earth

• See handout.

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Anthem (1938)

• tells the story of one mans rebellion against a
  totalitarian society. When the novels hero,
  Equality 7-2521, commits the unpardonable
  crimeindependent thoughthe sets himself in
  conflict with the moral strictures of his worlda
  world in which all expressions of individualism
  have been suppressed, where the very word I has
  been banished from the languagea world of
  joyless, selfless men permitted to exist only for
  the sake of serving the group.
• Written in 1937, as a kind of a rest from work
  on her novel The Fountainhead, Anthem anticipates
  some of that novels themes. Anthems theme is
  meaning and glory of mans ego. Its style is
  unique among Ayn Rands works in that it is
  written in the form of a prose poeman anthem to
  the ego.
• Initially refused publication in America (one
  publisher rejected it on the grounds that the
  author does not understand socialism), Anthem
  was first published in England. An American
  edition appeared in 1946 and the novel remains in
  print to this day, widely used in classrooms
  across the U.S.

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AnthemTopics Select ONE of the following
three topics

• Equality 7-2521 states that it is very unusual
  for men to reach the age of 45 (Chapter 1).
  Consistent with the story and its meaning, offer
  several possible explanations as to why life
  expectancy is so short in his society.
• Anthem is a heroic and inspiring story about the
  triumph of the individuals independent spirit.
  Even though, at the end of the novel, Equality is
  greatly outnumbered, and modern society lies in
  ruins, it is a story of liberation and hopenot
  despair. Discuss.
• In a single, unified essay, explain the meaning
  and wider significance of each of the following
  quotes in the story
• The glass box in our arms is like a living heart
  that gives us strength. We have lied to
  ourselves. We have not built this box for the
  good of our brothers (Chapter 7).
• I wished to know the meaning of things. I am the
  meaning (Chapter 11).
• I owe nothing to my brothers, nor do I gather
  debts from them (Chapter 11).

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AnthemJudging

• Essays will be judged on both style and content.
  Judges will look for writing that is clear,
  articulate and logically organized. Winning
  essays must demonstrate an outstanding grasp of
  the philosophic meaning of Anthem.
• Essay submissions are evaluated in a fair and
  unbiased multi-round judging process. To ensure
  the anonymity of our participants, essays are
  graded without cover sheets. Winners names
  remain unknown to judges until after the essays
  have been ranked and the contest results
  finalized. ARI checks essays with Ithenticate
  plagiarism detection software.

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AnthemRules

• Essay must be no fewer than 600 and no more than
  1,200 words in length and double-spaced.
• One entry per student, please.

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Deadline

• March 20, 2009
• Submit online.

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• FIRST PRIZE  2,000
• 5 SECOND PRIZES  500
• 10 THIRD PRIZES  200
• 45 FINALISTS  50
• 175 SEMIFINALISTS  30