Ayn Rand 1905-1982

1. Ayn Rand1905-1982 Rand was born and educated in Soviet Russia. She lived under totalitarian rule. Left/escaped Russia in 1926 for America which she saw as exemplifying her individualistic philosophy.

2. Ayn Rand’s “Anthem” Philosophy

3. Ego, Id, Superego (Freud) • Ego: the self; the individual as aware of himself. • Id: instinctive energy; dominated by the pleasure principle and impulsive wishing • Superego: the conscience

4. Value Systems • Altruism: Unselfish concern for the welfare of others; opposed to egoism. • Collectivism: socialism. • Individualism: the leading of one’s life in one’s own way without regard for others; laissez-faire economics; the state exists for the individual not vice versa.

5. Thinking Processes • Reason: To think coherently and logically; to draw inferences or conclusions from facts known or assumed. • Mysticism: attaining knowledge of spiritual truths through intuition and mediation.

6. Three Antipodes • Individualism vs. Collectivism • Egoism vs. Altruism • Reason vs. Mysticism

7. Heroes • Heroic characters risking their lives for ideals: triumph of individual spirit, triumph of those who reject the power of the collective. • Anthem isn’t specifically anti-Russian. Intellectuals in America in the 1930’s were intoxicated by communism.

8. Questions Raised by Anthem • If we could design a society, what would we design? • What is the moral and just society? • Does my life belong to the group? • Can a society without freedom be productive? • Do I have the right to pursue my own happiness?

9. Prometheus • -name means “forethought” • - Story of Promethus • stood throughout centuries as a great rebel against injustice & authority & power, bringing light and reason. • Thomas Edison was called the Prometheus of our time. • Frankenstein = The New Prometheus.

10. Gaea/Gaia (guy-ah or jee-ah) • Mother Earth. Married Uranaus (brother). (Overhanging heavens).

11. Themes: Utopia & Dystopia • anti-Utopia • Creativity

12. Themes: Individualism vs. Collectivism • Collectivism = subjugation of individual to group. Worth determined by service to the group. • Individualism = each person is independent • Individualism doesn’t mean doing whatever you feel like. It means each person has the same rights. • Look for Rand’s definition of “self” in Anthem

13. Individualism continued • Not every person can be as happy as the next. Forced brotherhood will only deplete the spirits of the successful. • Individual happiness is the culmination of patience, work, and physical or material expenditure. • “Group think” – our society seems to look down on people who like to be alone, who don’t want to follow a group or be with a group.

14. Themes: Egoism: “concern for one’s own interests” • ambition • wanting things for oneself • loving someone • thinking for oneself • egoism is not god in the religious sense. Ego is the highest value. The source of what is good. • Rand said she wrote the book for people who consider EGO immoral.

15. Themes: Egoism continued • those who allow self-interest to dominate are called greedy, selfish, evil. But without selfishness, we lose our advanced mind • self-love as one of the primary aspects of freedom and self-governance. • COMPASSION not the antithesis of SELFISHNESS. • Work for rational self-interest---not sacrifice self to others or ask others to sacrifice self to us. Rejection of altruism.

16. Themes: Free Will • We have CHOICE. • Free will = choice to think or not. We aren’t doomed to a life of despair and defeat. • We are all responsible for our own behavior – not society, heredity, or past. • (Choice Theory: We cannot necessarily change forces but can change our behavior, thinking, emotions, and reactions. Success identity: we have strength, responsibility, and self-discipline.)

17. Theme: Reason • This is what is preeminent in humans. The mind/conceptual faculty. This leads to emotions (the ability to make value judgments). Reason possesses volition – ability to make choices). • Reason is the property of the individual brain. No such thing as collective brain. We choose to use reason. We can choose not to reason (not to decide is to decide). • That which you do not know is not a charge against you; that which you refuse to know is immoral.

18. Objectivism • Wishing won’t make it so. • Only source of knowledge is reason. Only guide to action. • Humanity: each person is an end to him/herself. Cannot sacrifice self to others or others to self. • Ideal political/economic system = laissez faire capitalism. • Anarchy = irresponsible, irrational, anti-intellectual

19. After reading Anthem… • What laws do we have today that Rand would agree and disagree with? What programs, parts of our lives are collectivist? • How would Rand stand on issues such as abortion, death penalty, welfare, income taxes, draft, drug use, environmental protection, capitalism, bail outs, farm subsidies, “Buy American” programs, affirmative action, prayer in school, the space program? • Compare the idea of equality in the Declaration of Independence vs. Anthem • What message does Rand have for young people today?