Individualism, Modern Capitalism, and Dystopian Visions
Question 2 • ELA 11B-CR
Read the excerpt from Anthem.Perhaps they cried out in protest and in warning. But men paid no heed to their warning. And they, these few, fought a hopeless battle, and they perished with their banners smeared by their own blood. And they chose to perish, for they knew. To them, I send my salute across the centuries, and my pity. The imagery of “a hopeless battle” helps to develop the theme that group thinking limits man’s potential because it
Answer
A
gives details of how violent societies can be when faced with overwhelming obstacles.
B
suggests that the group with the larger numbers always wins the battle.
C
implies that the narrator will also be killed for questioning authority.
D
depicts the collective society as a destructive force that represses the independent thinker.
Explanation
The “hopeless battle” and the few people who “perished” suggest that independent thinkers are overwhelmed and destroyed when the larger society refuses to heed them. This develops the idea that collective thinking represses individual potential; the passage focuses on that repression, not simply on which side has more people or on the narrator’s fate.
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