Anthem- Favorite Passage

Out of the entire novel of Anthem, my favorite line is "There is nothing that can take a man's freedom away from him, save other men. To be free a man must be free of his brothers" (Rand). In the society that both Equality and Liberty used to live in before their escape, the freedom was incredibly lacking. Those in charge of the society used their freedom to control all of the inhabitants and have zero tolerance for imagination or creativity. They abused their power and this was why Equality and "The Golden One" fled.

Prior to this quote, Equality has been reading a few of the books from the home he has discovered. He is learning about the use of "I" and a world from the past that had more freedom. The quote is describing how freedom is something that belongs to each individual. Only another individual is capable of taking that from them.

Before he went about his journey, this is exactly what had happened. Instead of allowing each person decide their paths and gain new knowledge, they stifle it greatly and inhibit it based on the rules of the authority. A person needs to do these things in their own way and not be controlled by what those in charge tell them to be.

Now, in the quote it has a statement about to have freedom, one must be without other people. This does not mean that they must live alone forever to be free. It means that one must find and use their own freedom. No one can give freedom; it would limit it. Also, no one can limit how to use their freedom; it would not be freedom this way. Simply, the quote explains how we always deserve to be free and no one besides other people can remove that right. So to remain free, one must have their own freedom and use it the way they desire to.