Ayn Rand Explained

Enright, a psychotherapist and board member of the Atlas Society who is revising and updating Merrill’s 1991 The Ideas of Ayn Rand, examines Rand’s life, writings, and thought, as well as the often harsh critical reaction to her philosophy. From her traumatic experiences of growing up during the Russian Revolution, Rand discovered a “passionate love for independent, creative Man, and a hatred for all forms of collectivism.” Out of this, she developed Objectivism, best expressed in her novels The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged. In her fiction, highly independent men struggle against a totalitarian world to produce great, creative work and achieve success. Taking reason as the ultimate guide, Rand concludes that “the only meaningful or justifiable values a man can choose are those which serve to sustain his life.” Viewed through this lens, capitalism becomes the best system for providing people with opportunities to develop their talents. This emphasis on individual excellence also means Rand rejected such values as altruism, decried religious ideologies, and called for a “pure” laissez-faire market economy. Enright shows how Rand’s ideas emerge from previous philosophers, explaining her view of selfishness as Aristotle’s concept of the “Great-Souled man,” “pursuing excellence and achievement” with nobility and vision. An exhaustive exploration of a controversial, much misunderstood writer and thinker. (Feb.)