Interestingly enough, I was reading Anthem by Ayn Rand when I decided to write this essay. As an objectivist, Rand wrote Anthem to warn Western society of the evils of collectivism, or to put it in a way we can better understand today, socialism. In it, she describes an “equitable world” made for the happiness of all. Babies are born into no family, with no parents. When they reach the age of five they are sent to The Home Of The Students. When they turn fifteen, the Council Of Vocations (who know best) assign them a job that they will work until they turn forty, afterward in which they will promptly die. Despite this society taking place far in the future, they lack technology. The latest developed tech was a candle, discovered decades ago. In this society, what you can think is restricted. Most things are illegal to say and any outward expression of glee is prohibited because everyone is already the post to inherently be happy. The main character, Equality 7-2521 has issues with this world which is where the conflict begins.
The rest of the plot doesn't matter much to what I wish to convey, which is we are individual human beings. Being ourselves is where we most succeed. To quote her introduction “There is no such thing as a collective brain”.
Objectivism trumps collectivism, and if that statement doesn't make sense to you, I believe an understanding of Ego, past its simple definition, will clarify it. Nonetheless, I do believe a definition is a good place to start.
According to Merriam-Webster Ego refers to self especially as contrasted with another self or the world. This certainly describes Anthem. Equality 7-2521, in a world of collectivism, discovered himself. But Anthem isn’t the only way in which we can understand the concept of Ego.
What Happened To Ego?
Discussing the fall of ego before we even understand its meaning to the fullest may not make sense, but trust me. I believe this will give us a better perspective of what we lost as we analyze further.
Politically speaking, seeing what happened to Ego is right in front of us. Individuality is predicated on the notion that a small and minimal government won't get in our way. On the contrary, a communist/socialist government that unreasonably taxes you, forces you into welfare programs, and decides your life, quite obviously will get in the way of individuality. It turns out that the less freedom you have the less power over yourself you have. Sadly a society that will sacrifice your individuality is becoming closer and closer to reality in America today. What the loud minority unanimously supports is a collectivist life over an objective one (the loud minority refers to the small group of radical leftists who only seem high in numbers because they scream so loud, and claim to represent everyone). The modern left-wing political crusade on ego is easy to see. Every view they have openly thwarts individualism. Citizen-funded health care, corrupt “minority” coalitions, unions, and social programs would no doubt disgust objectivists like Ayn Rand.
But to the loud minority, the loss of ego isn’t such a bad thing and in fact, rather beneficial. How could you ever think just of yourself and not of the common welfare? Why would you make your own decisions when smarter elites with degrees can make them for you? See the problem isn't that individuality silently died out. It’s that it was purposely exterminated by a small minority and no one seemed to have the energy to fight back. The American left-wing is simply walking up to us, grabbing our freedom, and chucking it and our money towards a collective pile, in which later it will be divided back to us in smaller numbers. All in the name of “equity”. They are the steam rollers and we are the squashed.
But to answer the question as to why ego is gone in the first place: I find it best to read the words of Thomas Sowell. "Much of the social history of the Western world, over the past three decades, has been a history of replacing what worked with what sounded good." The left-wing is pursuing an idea that sounds good despite its constant failure. But like I said before, objectivism always trumps collectivism. They were wrong.
What Is Ego?
When I came to the section of my essay when I needed to actually explain what ego is, I hit a brick wall. Consequently, I decided to leave it for a day and come back the next. Well, one day turned into two and two turned into a week. I was stuck staring at the header “What Is Ego”. Then I figured out the problem. Ego isn't something I think we can easily define. We lack the words. George Orwell's most popular novel “1984” describes a tyrannical and authoritarian society. And within that society, an 11th edition of the dictionary is being formed that seeks to cut down on most language. Specifically, words having to do with freedom and independence. This dictionary will also cut down on the number of descriptive words used. For example, the words fantastic, great, excellent, and bad will all be turned into amalgamations of the word good. Fantastic is now double-good and bad is now ungood. For the readers, it is obvious that Big Brother is trying to limit the amount of thinking people can make even in their own heads, as the citizens won’t even know what the word freedom means by 2050.
This long description of the book leads me to my point of why I can’t explain the world ego as easily as I thought I could. Imagine if the people in 1984 tried to think of a description of liberty. They couldn’t because they lack the words to. Now I’m not saying I can’t describe ego because some shadowy authoritarian state is limiting me, but I am rather pointing out that it is possible for someone to understand something, but just lack the words to say it. The people in 1984 would surely internally know what freedom is, they just wouldn’t be able to describe it.
Now, why did I go on a long rant about my difficulty with this subject?
I did it to illustrate the power of ego. See ego is internal and so beyond what we can physically explain. The difference between ego and 1984 is in 1984 the limit on description was due to the censorship of words. In ego’s case, it's because it is vastly more powerful than words themselves.
Ego is the feeling we get inside of us to…
That’s the best I can explain it in English. See the dot dot dot leads to whatever you want to do to fill it. That’s the beauty of ego. It's all about your own decisions and the ability to be the master of your own life. The most imperative part of ego though is using it for good rather than bad. See someone who hurts someone else gets in the way of that person's ego and it denies the whole principle. Ego is for everyone.
The Success Of Ego
If I was asked to split all systems of power and political systems that ever existed into two different groups it would be the collectivists and the individualists. The collectivist of course favors the good of the society at the sacrifice of its people while the individualist believes the individual should decide his own fate, and inevitably this will improve society (since people have an incentive to be successful, and success improves society).
This simple split that I believe accurately divides all politics can be best seen during the cold war when the collectivist, or the Soviets, squared up against the west, or the individualists. And of course, we can obviously see who won when looking at society today. This is my point. The Individualist, the group based in ego, always see success while the collectivist continually fail. Hundreds of different communist parties have ruled many many different countries. All have ended in poverty, blood, and ultimately failure. Remaining is only 5 countries ruled by communism. And the only reason they exist is because they have become so successful at ruling with an iron fist and squashing any free thought. By luck, they have managed to scare their citizens into complete compliance. This to me though is still a failure.
On the other hand ever since America's founding, and the rest of the world following in its steps, we have seen success. A population boom, a revolution in healthcare, and the closest thing to world piece we have seen in a long time.
How To Achieve Ego
When a man loses his freedom of self, he loses his own reason, which encompasses there actions and emotions. It’s a true tragedy.
Let me reiterate. When someone loses their freedom, they can no longer make decisions. Decisions that determine what they do and how they feel. Loss of freedom is more than just not having guns or abiding by an unfair curfew. You lose yourself and your own mind. That’s why it is such a tragedy. And because it’s a tragedy, we owe it to ourselves to find our ego.
The first step in finding one's ego is allowing us the ability to achieve it. To do this we must fight whatever governmental force holds us back. Luckily this step, which is the hardest, is most likely already done if your living anywhere in the west. The next step is finding yourself and your calling. Do what you want to do, and so long as it's moral, and it doesn’t get in the way of your health, don't listen to anyone who tries to stop you. And due to the natural law of Ego, your path towards freedom will naturally guide you down a happy and successful life.
Ego is oneself. That’s the best definition I can think of. And as an abandoned ship floats the sea at the mercy of the waves, go through your own life to the mercy of Ego.
