Post: #1

I am currently reading Atlas Shrugged which has become a bible of sorts for some right wingers/libertarians.

Personally, I think it is second rate literature from a purely linguistic and story telling viewpoint. It is also several hundred pages too long for it to tell its main ideology.

It does have some very interesting points about human nature.

One particularly interesting part is about female nature and hypergamy. Ayn Rand herself (yes the author is a woman even if you wouldn't suspect it), was a strange character, not very feminine in real life and in many ways a prototype of the modern careerist woman.

In her own life Ayn Rand actually cuckcolded her husband with some other dude who she met 2-3 times a week for sex only. The husband apparantly was ok with this.

In the book, the main protagonist is Dagny Taggart a woman leading the largest railroad company in the US. In the book she only dates two men - one is a brilliant multi-genius and the other is a steel magnate. This is obviously interesting from a red pill viewpoint showing how hypergamy works. She simply can't date down and therefore is limited to only a very few brilliant men.

Just as interesting is how she reacts when she finally hooks up with the character Hank Rearden (the steel magnate). She totally submits in a close to machocistic way, abandoning all self respect and enjoys knowing and feeling like all her professional greatness means nothing is reduced to being a pure object for sexual gratification for Hank Rearden. All her outer world brilliance and power becomes meaningless to the submission to a man.

The books makes it perfectly clear in great detail how this is the case, THIS - submission to a man - is what Dagny Taggart really wanted, her deep desire, yet she can only do so to a man she admires and adores, someone who is her superior in society and therefore her choices are limited to the extreme.

For a book written in 1957 a long time before nanny states and second wave feminism, this book is very prophetic as to the mind set of the modern 'careerist' woman. Ayn Rand, though she seemingly despised the socialist world, in a way was herself the very blueprint for what would arise from those exact socialist policies.

There are other interesting takeaways from Atlas Shrugged, but they are more mundane in my opinion and not really that unique. It's mostly about how men mask their ignorance and incompetence through appeals to the good of society.

I'd recommend reading Atlas Shrugged, perhaps mostly to those who symphatize with leftist policies and also for libertarians who need a reality check as to the extremes of their viewpoints. However, the book is simply too long and can't compare to the greatest of novels in writing.

Post: #2

I always thought that Atlas Shrugged should be a graphic novel. The characters are completely one-dimensional, either cartoon heroes or cartoon villains.

The economic moral of the story has
merit. And the depiction of an economy goin to ruins in the name of social justice or whatever is pretty spot on. Look at Venezuela.

The other major flaw is Rand's bizarre feminism and her take on romance. The main female protagonist runs through two of the world's biggest alpha males, both of whom both love and are solely obsessed with her for her superioir intellect. And both of them end up conceding that she should be with another Alpha, because he is superior to both of them.

I would call it delusional, but Rand manage to pull if similar shit in real life. She was old and married and managed to carry on an affair with er younger married graduate assistant, with the consent of his wife and Rand's husband. Game recognized.

Post: #3

I read it, I liked it a lot, if it was extreme then I am extreme, moderation does not solve anything quite like excess does, maybe she exaggerated sometimes but it was all done with a specific purpose, overall 9/10, loved it.

Post: #4

(01-08-2014 09:53 AM)LEMONed IScream Wrote:  I read it, I liked it a lot, if it was extreme then I am extreme, moderation does not solve anything quite like excess does, maybe she exaggerated sometimes but it was all done with a specific purpose, overall 9/10, loved it.

I don't consider it extreme, but unnuanced. For a book that long, there is little character development. It is preaching to the choir so to speak.

The philosophy of Atlas Shrugged of ethical egoism is too simple for me, even if I consider myself a libertarian.

Post: #5

That was made purposely I'm sure. The bi dimensional nature of the characters is totally intentional.

Simple is often good. Knowledge starts in simple terms, transforms into more complex terms, then is synthesized again to simple terms.

Post: #6

One of my ambitions is to memorize this speech. Would be the coolest party trick ever.