Ayn Rand and Me

So I finished Atlas Shrugged this weekend. What follows are my brief, personal thoughts on Ayn Rand based on my reading of Atlas, as well as The Fountainhead, which I completed back in February of this year. I was hoping to do a podcast on the topic with my Objectivist friend but, unfortunately, he is currently constrained by the political nature of his work so he was unable to go on record.

I read The Fountainhead first based on the recommendation of my Objectivist friend, and after reading both Atlas and Fountainhead, I would agree with that recommendation. I enjoyed Fountainhead more basically because I was able to relate to its message, it's an individual struggle as opposed to the epic, worldwide struggle in Atlas. I could relate more with Howard Roark than I could with any of the characters in Atlas, except maybe Eddie Willers.

Rand's work has seen a resurgence in popularity since the latest economic downturn and the election of President Obama. Some like to say it's due to the prescient nature of her work in how it so accurately describes the policies of the current administration, but collectivist thought was around before Rand wrote Atlas and it will be around long after Obama leaves office. What I may have appreciated most about Atlas though was Rand's attempt to tackle the question of what motivates the collectivist; why he thinks and acts like he does. This is something I've often wondered as well and even though I don't necessarily agree with her conclusions, I do appreciate the attempt to come to terms with the irrational, something I still struggle with myself.

I would encourage anyone who hasn't yet read Atlas or Fountainhead to do so, as long as you have ample time on your hands. Atlas is one of the best selling novels of all time (apologies to the Scientologists out there but I don't think it's fair to consider Hubbard since the the Church only buys his novels to inflate the sales), and it clearly still has an impact on many of our politicians today so it's worth reading if only to better understand the influence it still has on our leaders. I was surprised at the number of "Who is John Galt" signs I saw at the two tea party rallies I attended in '09 and '10, but what's been more surprising to me are the number of alleged Rand devotees who haven't actually read any of her work. I've had her books on my shelf for a while now so since I had some time this year (and since I also swore off buying anymore used books until I had actually read the ones I own) I decided I finally needed to educate myself in the ways of Rand so I wouldn't be like one of those holding a John Galt sign and not knowing anything about John Galt.

I'm glad I waited until I was 29 to read Rand's two major novels because I don't think you can fully appreciate or understand her philosophy as an impressionable teenager. Nathaniel Branden, Rand's former student and lover, deals with some of the Benefits and Hazards of Objectivism in an essay you can read here (H/T to The Brazen Heads who did an entire episode on Rand which you can find on iTunes, Episode 8).

If you'd like to know more about Ayn Rand you can simply do a search for her on iTunes, or check out one of her many biographies. I listenened to a podcast the other day featuring Jennifer Burns, the author of "Goddess of the Market: Ayn Rand and the American Right." It's a biography that came out in 2009 that attempts to "explicate the evolution of Rand's individualist worldview, placing her within the context of American conservative and libertarian thought." I would at least recommend listening to the interview with Burns if you don't have time to read her book (search Jennifer Burns Rand and it's the interview from PRI:RadioWest).

Here is the famous review of Atlas Shrugged by Whittaker Chambers that appeared in National Review in 1957. And here is William F. Buckley discussing that review as well as his thoughts on Ayn Rand. Apparently National Review Online still won't publish Buckley's obituary of Rand, but here is a short excerpt that I think sums up the common view on Rand from her detractors,

"The Fountainhead, read in a certain way, is a profound assertion of the integrity of art. What did Miss Rand in was her anxiety to theologize her beliefs. She was an eloquent and persuasive antistatist, and if only she had left it at that - but no. She had to declare that God did not exitst, that altruism was despicable, that only self-interest is good and noble. She risked, in fact, giving to capitalism that bad name that its enemies have done so well in giving it, and that is a pity. Miss Ran was a talented woman, devoted to her ideals. She came as a refugee from communism to this country as a young woman, and carved out a substantial career. May she rest in peace, and may she experience the demystification of her mind possessed."