Even the society of drones who blindly follow the edicts of the Councils are shown to do so voluntarily. These people are not brainwashed by means of drugs or physical torture; they are not beaten into submission. Rather, they simply conform. They go along with what they are taught. They do not question the councils, even in their own minds. They are not like Equality 7-2521 or the Golden One. They show no independence of spirit. It is true that no open dissent is tolerated by the rulers — and punishment for disobedience is swift and, in some cases, terminal. But none of the followers shows any indication that, like Equality 7-2521, they have nurtured — in private and quietly — a mind of their own. The entire populace of the city stood in the public square and witnessed the execution of the Saint of the Pyre. But so far as we know, none of the others is haunted by the memory nor seeks the meaning of the Unspeakable Word. Certainly, nobody but Equality 7-2521 defies the Council's commands to pursue personal values. All that the citizens have been taught is that the wisdom of the Councils is complete — so they accept it and obey.
The members of this society, including the adults, are like obedient children who unquestioningly accept what their parents tell them. Equality 7-2521, the Golden One, and International 4-8818 question the Councils in their own minds; the others accept what they are told. In the face of the alternative between independent thinking and blind compliance, different individuals make different choices.
It would be mistaken to morally condemn the masses for their unwillingness to keep alive their own minds and spirits. They are not evil but are cowed by the authoritarianism of the rulers. The Councils that mandate blind obedience are evil. Rather, the intriguing question raised by the heroic characters is how they manage to keep alive their own minds in the face of such oppressive pressure to conform. Ayn Rand's purpose is not to criticize the crowd, but to glorify the rare individuals who know, against all teaching and social pressure, that their minds are sacred and not to be surrendered to authority.
