dak2@mtuxt.UUCP (D.KALL) (09/14/85)
----- News saved at Fri, 13-Sep-85 20:43:50 EDT
dak2@mtuxt.UUCP (D.KALL) (09/14/85)
I wrote to net.general looking for conversation about Ayn Rand, her novels, essays, or philosophy. Someone told me that there was a discussion in net.books a while back about her. I would appreciate if anyone who kept copies could send them to me. Or if issues are still lingering to start them up again. I have known her work for about 10 years many of which I spent moderating debates and discussions about her philosophy. I am eager to discuss. For a starting topic I would like to raise consideration of her anti-theistic stance. Is it a necessary premise of Objectivism? Is it a personal dislike she had? Is she in violation of the tenets of her own philosophy by being so anti-theistic? For now, in motion; darren Kall.
dat@hpcnof.UUCP (09/20/85)
I've recently read a couple of Ayn Rand books ("Anthem" and
"Atlas Shrugged") and found her philosophies most intriguing.
Intriguing, however, doesn't mean that I agree with her!
The greatest disagreement that I have is that man is by virtue
of being 'civilized' a creature that lives in groups, and quests the
approval and affection of the group.
The people in Rands' books, on the other hand, were never so
succesful as when they were deliberately turning their backs on society
and being selfish. This, of course, is part of the Rand creed - the
"holy trinity" of self, self and self. While I agree that one shouldn't
be selfless, I don't think people should be as overly selfish as she
suggests.
More than that, though, I feel that Ayn Rand was too simplistic
in her books - they're filled with cardboard characters and one or two
"movers" that suffer from what I call the 'superhero syndrome' (this is
also common in spy books and science fiction, alas!). Take the book
"Atlas Shrugged" for example:
The guy who owned the steel mill was a 'self-made millionaire'
and was very involved in his work. The people who lived with him were
all leeches and gave him guilt trips for being what they'd have inevitably
called a "workaholic". He was. He was also an arrogant SOB superhero
surrounded by a bunch of sniveling cardboard characters! ARGH!
I could go on, but not having either of the books with me, I'll
defer the conversation.
As an idle thought, perhaps we could continue this discussion
via mail? This isn't really that much to do with books per se, but
more with the philosophy of Ayn Rand and such...
From the wizened fingers of,
-- Dave Taylor
..ihnp4!hpfcla!d_taylor
..hplabs!hpcnof!dat
or: hpcnof!dat@HPLABS.CSNET-RELAY