Would any of you consider Ayn Rand to be a real philosopher?

Question

I know at least 15 PhD-level educated professional philosophers who do NOT consider Ayn Rand (book: Atlas Shrugged, etc.) to be an actual philosopher. They tend to view her as a pop-culture phenomenon of the 1950s-60s.

Though now there are more and more female philosophers in the world, why do you think she has this low status among university professors? Was her book just clap-trap as it was mentioned in its early reviews? Thanks for your opinions.

Answer 1

The very fact that 50 years after the publication of "Atlas Shrugged" people still ask the same question shows the enduring nature of her ideas. She refined Aristotle, and brought him into the 20th Century. No one ever accused Thomas Aquinas of "not being a philosopher" when he brought Aristotle into the 13th century.
To quote Aristotle: "The disease afflicting the modern world is above all a disease of the intellect. It began in the mind and has by now penetrated to its very roots. Is it surprising then that the world should seem to us shrouded in darkness?"
Rand recognized this in the fashion of Aristotle, not in the fashion of Kant, Hegel, and Marx, who all followed Plato, which is why she is disdained.
But you will find, if you look, that the single biggest philosophical factor in Washington politics that prevents us from going totally socialistic is the large number of Objectivist think-tankers, including the Cato Institute, the Objecitivst Center, The Atlas Society, etc.

When you impugne Rand, you impugne Aristotle and Aquinas as well, because she did nothing more than give them back to us after a long period of intellectual sleep by the Rationalistst and the Empiricists. She knocked their head together and said said each was only half right. She demonstrated where each was incorrect, and defended them where they were correct.

And if Atlas Shrugged stands alone as the great depiction of the horrors of Marxism on intellectual thinking, then thank god it has lasted 50 years--so far.

Answer 2

Ayn Rand is generally disregarded by most philosophers for the following reasons:
1. She made her political views well known, and commented frequently on them. Among professional philosophers, politics is regarded as something of a pedestrian exercise.
2. She was firmly anti-establishment, especially in the field of philosophy, as she held contemporary philosophy in complete disregard. And she was not modest in her criticism of them, either.
3. She did not submit work to peer reviewed journals, all of her work was done commercially, and within a small enclave of friends and thinkers.

Modern mainstream western philosophy is sometimes called "continental philosophy", as it describes various philosophical traditions strongly influenced by certain 19th and 20th century philosophers from mainland Europe. The traditions comprising continental philosophy include German idealism, phenomenology, existentialism and its antecedents, hermeneutics, structuralism, post-structuralism, French feminism, and the critical theory of the Frankfurt School and some other branches of western Marxism. It's not hard to see how philosophers of this school would be disinclined to accept Ayn Rand, and likewise, it's not hard to see why she dismissed them.

However, it would be unwise to count Ayn Rand among the dead just yet. There is a steadily growing scholarly interest in her work.
-Numerous fellowships for the study of Ayn Rand's ideas are being founded in universities across the country
- the Journal of Ayn Rand Studies is a major inroad into academic territory. It is a scholarly, peer reviewed journal dedicated to the study of Ayn Rand - principally her philosophic work. It is non-partisan and accepts both favorable and critical interpretations of her works.
-The American Philosophy association has a very active chapter devoted to Ayn Rand, frequently giving lectures and publishing works

I generally try not to judge others by zeitgeist and acceptance alone. I would hardly call her a mainstream philosopher, but I also know that if her ideas were as crazy and dismissable as some people say they are, her ideas would have died out decades ago.

Answer 3

She was essentially an anti-communism/socialism political commentator. I don't think you could call it philosophy. She was first in favor during the cold war, and fell out of favor especially the last 20 years due to the "greening"of American education, which saw her as an attack on Democratic/Socialistic principles.
The great band Rush has never been taken seriously or won any accollades from Canadian education institutions because they all hate Ayn Rand for being a "fascist"(which is a bunch of rubbish). Rush based at least two songs and one album on her work, "Something for Nothing," "Anthem" and "2112." (My favorites).

Answer 4

So what, frankly. Just because they might be PhD level does not entitle them to be a snob, but many of those with PhD's don't concern themselves with that point.

Pop-culture is a very strong set of words with which to describe Rand. Populist is probably closer to the mark.

Answer 5

There are many who see the woman as a philosopher, but many see her as a very good writer, and author of some fine books.
I personally don't see her as either. But that comes down to my personal tastes. My opinion on this subject is not an absolute.

Answer 6

I don't see her as a philosopher at all in the root sense, a lover of wisdom.

She was in love with the image of herself as a sage and guru, and worked quite well to promote that image, after deciding that being a successful novelist wasn't enough for her.

The brighter minds among her followers broke with her -- and today after her death the more literal-minded and zealous of her intellectual heirs still tend to drive the best of their converts away -- consider David Kelley.

From what I can tell, Kelley might in fact be a philosopher.

What do your Ph.D. associates think of his work?

Answer 7

its a brilliant book - but not a philosophy, more of a political point of view, perhaps that is what the professors are suggesting

Answer 8

Whatever one calls her Ayn Rand was a downer.

Answer 9

why not, is he not human?