Philosophy 201

Atlas Shrugged - Ayn Rand
"My philosophy, in essence, is the concept of man as a heroic being, with his own happiness as the moral purpose of his life, with productive achievement as his noblest activity, and reason as his only absolute." - from the appendix

Knowing that you like or dislike a certain philosophical position is not nearly enough, you have to know why. I dislike Rand's idea of Objectivism, but why? Rational self-interest and ethical naturalism are too easily molded into economic or political fascism - that's why. That and egoism and objectivism seem to run counter to any sort of Judeo-Christian ethic.

Rand worked out her philosophy through her fictional work, as well as through some of her nonfiction works - of much less renown. The basis is (and please correct my perceptions if you know better) that each person has the ability to percieve objective reality and act upon it without an external moral framework as long as that action does not deprive anyone else by subjectively depriving them opposing or outside of this objective reality. Convoluted, I know... Basically, you can't defraud someone, or rob them of possessions or life, because that would be wrong (existence exists, consciousness exists, existence is identity ergo everyone has the right to that identity and therefore life). She rejected Kant (and doesn't want to now and again?) because his ideas represented, to her at least, too much self-sacrifice (although what you describe as sacrifice is arguable as Objectivism requires sacrifice as well). But she also grudgingly rejected Nietzsche; she liked the whole super-man idea/rejection of Christianity thing, just not the might makes right implications.

Though I dislike the philosophy, it is somewhat understanable considering her family's losses during the 1917 Russian revolution - the individual value, the capitalist leanings, the rejection of joint ownership, moral independence of the actor etc.

Anyway.... the book...

The book itself is a good read, and it has to be since it's a gazillion pages long. The premise of industrialists going on strike against an increasingly socialist and controlling government is stretched - but interesting. The plot is built upon Rand's idea that our country runs and in fact thrives on the shoulders of MEN (mostly - she was called a traitor to her gender) committed to their own well being sounds suspiciously like Reaganomics (no surprise as Alan Greenspan was an early Rand groupie). Ok, I know I know, it sounds like I didn't like the book - and I do certainly disagree with it's philosophical underpinnings - but darn it if I couldn't put the thing down. One critic at the time of publication called it melodrama... so I guess that's what my tastes have devolved to, but nonetheless it is interesting. The only particularly melodramatic portion I found (other than the mysterious John Galt) was the utopian ending.

Rating: B+ (for having to justify why I liked it)