So what's the deal with "Atlas Shrugged"?

[7ontheline]

I believe that anyone who really buys into the philosophy of Ayn Rand has a pretty selfish, immature outlook on life. I was also one of the people who read Rand during my teenage years and thought "ZOMG! This is totally for me! I am so much smarter than the average person, they should get out of my way and let people like me run things without interference!"

FWIW, I also believe in personal responsibility and atheism, Dali. That said, Rand's philosophy is just too extreme. DidsIsRight in saying that Rand's books are just too simple and contemptuous of the common man. Don't pay any attention to any Objectivists trying to claim that the books are just a statement of ideals and not how things work in real life - one of the essential points of her philosophy seems to be that compromise is for the weak and a way to pander to the average. Maybe YOUR take on Objectivism is not as extreme, but the books tell a different story.

If you're going to read one, read Fountainhead. It's a little more tolerable - my take on it is that Howard Roark is sort of the ideal man, so it presents a picture of what her ideal person should act like. Fine, if quite a bit oversimplified and 2-dimensional (see Dids's post above). Atlas Shrugged is about how society should bend over backwards to accommodate these ideal people, and it's just a little too offensive to my sensibilities. I am smarter (book-wise, at least) than the average person by far, but I don't think it makes me better than them. It certainly doesn't make my needs more important for society. Atlas Shrugged is also extremely verbose and overwrought - it is painful to slog through, even for someone who likes it.

[Triumph36]

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Is Ayn Rand part of the accepted "philosophy canon" in course curriculae? Is it considered "pop philosophy"?

-Al

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First question - no. Second question - yes.

She simply re-interpreted Aristotle through capitalism in my eyes - but whatever, I couldn't get through the dreck that is Atlas Shrugged.

[jthegreat]

It's a great book that's widely misunderstood by legions of young people who don't fully understand it. For instance,

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I am smarter (book-wise, at least) than the average person by far, but I don't think it makes me better than them. It certainly doesn't make my needs more important for society.[ QUOTE ]


I think the fact that it's written in an allegorical style (as others have mentioned) makes it easier to be misunderstood.

I've read it a few times. I always enjoy it.

[markum9]

I liked the book. It's better than The Fountainhead in that it presents her philosophical theories more completely, although it doesn't flow as well as a novel.

My only beef with it is that it could easily be condensed down to ~500 pages. The middle 500 pages are just the same storyline repeating as the world spirals downward. So just rip those out and enjoy!!! The 80 page speech was just ridiculous, and i skimmed through it. Who is John Galt anyways?

[7ontheline]

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It's a great book that's widely misunderstood by legions of young people who don't fully understand it. For instance,

[ QUOTE ]
I am smarter (book-wise, at least) than the average person by far, but I don't think it makes me better than them. It certainly doesn't make my needs more important for society.[ QUOTE ]


I think the fact that it's written in an allegorical style (as others have mentioned) makes it easier to be misunderstood.



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My problem with it is that regardless of whether it's written as an allegory, her stated philosophy seems to be uncompromising. If you want to take it as a very general suggestion on how to live (Stick to your beliefs without bowing down to external forces, personal responsibility, etc.) then fine. That's not the way the books are written though. The speech of John Galt, for instance, is a defiant manifesto. If you try to soften the message then I think the writing loses its impact, because the situations her characters find themselves in are so absurd and hyper-exaggerated. Her character's motivations and actions only make sense in the setting of her overly simplified world of Great Men vs. stupid masses. I also still contend that the writing of Atlas Shrugged is awful and needed severe editing, no matter what you may believe about its philosophy.

[tuq]

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FWIW, I also believe in personal responsibility and atheism, Dali. That said, Rand's philosophy is just too extreme. DidsIsRight in saying that Rand's books are just too simple and contemptuous of the common man. Don't pay any attention to any Objectivists trying to claim that the books are just a statement of ideals and not how things work in real life - one of the essential points of her philosophy seems to be that compromise is for the weak and a way to pander to the average. Maybe YOUR take on Objectivism is not as extreme, but the books tell a different story.

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I'm going to start a NSFW thread in SMP to retaliate for this one.

[jthegreat]

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My problem with it is that regardless of whether it's written as an allegory, her stated philosophy seems to be uncompromising.

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This is a problem, why?

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I also still contend that the writing of Atlas Shrugged is awful and needed severe editing, no matter what you may believe about its philosophy.

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I disagree.

[OrangeCat]

If you want to find out about the philosophy of Ayn Rand and don’t want to read a long novel, get a book called “The Virtue of Selfishness.” It is a collection of short essays.

[deepdowntruth]

Having been an Objectivist for 15 years, I make it a point to avoid any of the bi-annual Ayn Rand threads on 2+2. They make me want to shoot myself.

[kidcolin]

except to just chime in and drop that. Nice work.