What is the relevance of this great work in respect to the times we face now?
2006-09-04 16:14:55 · 8 answers · asked by Only hell mama ever raised 6 in Arts & Humanities ➔ Books & Authors
Zook, what scholarship board? I am 48 y/o, way past the need for a scholarship.
2006-09-04 16:26:40 · update #1
I just liked the book. I appreciate all the insite as to where I might find info to write a thesis on her work. I have a master's in nursing and am not a student.
2006-09-04 17:08:51 · update #2
This is one of my favorite books. I agree with a lot of her philosophy about doing your best work and getting paid for it. In fact everytime I hear about Microsoft being a monopoly I think of Reardon. I just bought a laptop that came with word perfect instead of microsoft office - it's part of the anti-trust crap! It was "unfair" for microsoft to include office on new machines, because poor word perfect would never stand a chance. I happen to hate word perfect and it will be uninstalled as soon as I purchase office! If they made a better product THEN they could compete - they don't and have cried "unfair"! This thinking bothers me a lot!
On the other hand, Rand does not allow for mistakes. You work hard, you earn a living, put money away for savings, everything is good. What happens to the disabled, the elderly, the ill, the orphaned? Who takes care of those who can't take care of themselves? Who pays for that care?
There is also no mention of infrastructure. In her utopia there are no more taxes. Who builds and maintains the highways, the roads, water quality? Who makes sure that doctors, judges, teachers, police are certified to do their jobs? Who pays for the military to protect our borders? Who regulates health standards for food and medicine? These are things not answered in her books.
2006-09-05 03:07:15 · answer #1 · answered by Rose B 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I believe you would do well to go to your library ( or a nearby college library). Ask the Librarian to help you find the Literary Criticism on "Atlas Shrugged". You might also look at the critical writing on Rand's "Fountain Head". Rand's novels are her attempt to emphasize her political and economic beliefs in aristocracy of the mind. She got a lot of criticism from socialist, democratic believers, some of which is worth reading. Rand has a point. The question is "How valid is her thesis?"
2006-09-05 00:03:13 · answer #2 · answered by Chief 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Some. Her economics were pretty sound. Her ideas about God and spirituality were pretty lame. John Galt's 60 page speech...sermonizing and boring and dumb. Good story line though lol. I'd like to get lost and stay lost in my own little country.
Actually, getting paid for work you do well and enjoy is applicable at anytime. But I don't believe her premise that money is the only measure of a man's worth.
2006-09-04 23:23:27 · answer #3 · answered by keyz 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's very good :) Only ever read one other book that was longer...
It's a cross between philosophy and politics...
Society as a whole is in decline because the people 'of mind' start pulling out and stop 'running' society.
You can relate it to the times we face now in many ways... what if the american HS system stays in decline? (many thanks to all efforts by bill gates) what happens if amerca only produces 'looters' what happens if no one is able to be a problem solver?
2006-09-04 23:26:42 · answer #4 · answered by hoggendog 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Though I'm not a Randist (Humanist? Aynian? Egoist? :) ), I've always rather enjoyed the massive power of Rand's works, and keep coming back to the utopia she depicts as possible in 'Atlas Shrugged.'
Rand failed to predict the importance of the internet and of oil in our contemporary times; she chose to focus on railways and copper as the arteries of commerce. However, with that in mind, one could make a convincing parallel for a literature paper's main thrust... as the phrasing of your question seems to imply...
You might also ask yourself 'Who is John Galt?' - that is, who might be capable of playing that role in today's society. When our heroes are American Idol wailers and oft-wed actresses, our education systems in disintegration, and our societal standards in constant flux, is it possible that such philosophical concentration married to physical skill and technical intelligence might still emerge in the person of one man - or even a handful of men?
Hope that helps provide some starter ideas. If you would like quote me directly in whole or in part, please reference me as "J. Alkema aka 'bardmistress', online forum Yahoo Answers, 2006"
2006-09-04 23:27:45 · answer #5 · answered by bardmistress 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
If the scholarship board knew you were posting this they would kick your ar$e into next week.
2006-09-04 23:19:37 · answer #6 · answered by Zook 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
She's a soulless jerk who feels entitled to the fruits of other people's labor and tries to rationalize it by pretending she and those 'like her' are superior.
2006-09-04 23:19:51 · answer #7 · answered by cassandra 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
One of the five best books I've ever read!!!!
2006-09-05 00:49:52 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋