Anthem Quote Help!?

Question

What is my joy if all hands, even the unclean, can reach into it? What is my wisdom, if even the fools can dictate to me? What is my freedom, if all creatures, even the botched and the impotent, are my masters? Can someone interpret the words for me? I mean it's one of those quotes that I understand but can't put to print. I think it has something to do with his vulnerability and individualism, but I'm not so sure.

Answer 1

I assume you're talking about 'Anthem' by Ayn Rand. If so, this quotation is expressing her philosophy of Objectivism. It says (basically) that morality is determined by being productive and contributing to society. People who don't contribute (like the unemployed) are immoral and do not deserve the help of those who do contribute to society because everyone has talents or skills and those people have chosen not to use them for the good of society, according to this philosophy.

So, when he says "What is my joy if all hands, even the unclean, can reach into it?" He's saying that he can't get satisfaction from his (moral) work if other people who don't contribute can take advantage of it.

"What is my wisdom if even the fools can dictate to me?" This most likely refers to the fact that the people in power, government officials, CEOs of companies, or whomever, may not understand objectivism even though he does. He knows that he's being moral, but he has to follow their rules instead of living morally and sharing his wisdom with others.

"What is my freedom if all creatures, even the botched and the impotent are my masters" - this pretty much says the same thing as the other two sentences.

This is very general - I have not read 'Anthem,' but I did read 'Atlas Shrugged' and the ideological basis should be the same. I hope that helps.