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The Fountainhead
by Ayn Rand, Leonard Peikoff
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| Anti-socialism? | 8 | 05/07/2008 08:08AM |
| Objectivism | 7 | 30 days ago, 01:35PM |
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Would you like to hear the only joke I've ever written? Q: "How many Objectivists does it take to screw in a lightbulb?" A: (Pause, then disdainfully) "Uh...one!" And thus it is that so many of us have such a complicated relationship with the work of Ayn Rand; unabashed admirers at the age of 19, unabashedly horrified by 25, after hanging out with some actual Objectivists and witnessing what a--holes they actually are, and also realizing that Rand and her cronies were one of ...more
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Read in October, 2007
recommends it for:
those who are ambitious and feel out of place in society due to their lack of regard for much of it
This book is remarkable.
Basic plot: howard roark (individual) & peter keating (copycat). roark constantly fights with society but manages to survive, keating gets lifted up by society and then destroyed by it (can you say celebrities?). this is the plot at its most rudimentary - naturally there's more to it.
I understand the comments about Objectivists being assholes and I respond to that in two ways - firstly, does this not prove her point about how people respond to/treat individual...more
Basic plot: howard roark (individual) & peter keating (copycat). roark constantly fights with society but manages to survive, keating gets lifted up by society and then destroyed by it (can you say celebrities?). this is the plot at its most rudimentary - naturally there's more to it.
I understand the comments about Objectivists being assholes and I respond to that in two ways - firstly, does this not prove her point about how people respond to/treat individual...more
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Read in June, 2006
recommends it for:
people who are not angry and misanthropic
As an architecture student with no field experience, I can't testify to the accuracy of this book. Given that over half a century has passed since its initial publication, and that Ayn Rand herself only spent a few months working in an architecture firm, I'm pretty sure this isn't the most reliable account of the profession. But the book strongly and admirably revolves around architecture. Rand fuses her philosophy, Objectivism, with the contrasting aesthetic ideals and gritty reality of buildin...more
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I read this book for the first time when I was 16 years old, in the summer between 10th and 11th grade. Up until that point in my life, I had never questioned any of my values: my values were my parents' values and that was that. This book made me open my mind to other possibilities, and since I didn't have a job or anything else to do (I was at my summer home in Holland and mostly spent my days riding my bike along the Vecht), I gave a lot of time to thinking about this book. To say that its...more
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I did not like The Fountainhead as much as Atlas Shrugged. Atlas Shrugged was more of a page turner. There were very specific character goals that drove that story. The Fountainhead had a gradual buildup to a very climactic courtroom scene. The Fountainhead took the reader on a very linear journey, but never going beyond the basic story of a man who wants to succeed. Of course there are more nuances than that, but that is the basic essence. Atlas Shrugged takes a more epic approach and raises mo...more
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Read in April, 2008
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Read in October, 2004
Overall, this is not only great fiction, but Rand also has some great ideas which are presented with an uncanny amount of clarity.
The architectural profession serves as the backdrop for the story. The story itself is quite interesting; either Rand did a great deal of research or she did a good job faking it. I maintained a complete disinterest in architecture before reading the book, but still found myself actively engaged while Rand discussed the matter. I wonder how many young readers are ...more
The architectural profession serves as the backdrop for the story. The story itself is quite interesting; either Rand did a great deal of research or she did a good job faking it. I maintained a complete disinterest in architecture before reading the book, but still found myself actively engaged while Rand discussed the matter. I wonder how many young readers are ...more
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This book made me so angry at the characters that I stopped reading it. Maybe partially because I could relate to the poor girl who got walked all over whose boyfriend dumped her for the shallow, self-destructive, beautiful rich girl.
I read “We the Living” and then “Anthem” also by Ayn Rand. I liked both of those short novels. "We the Living" was a heartbreaking riches to rags story where the main character tries to support her and the love of her life by dating a wealthier...more
I read “We the Living” and then “Anthem” also by Ayn Rand. I liked both of those short novels. "We the Living" was a heartbreaking riches to rags story where the main character tries to support her and the love of her life by dating a wealthier...more
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Read in January, 2001
The Fountainhead is a tale of both defeat and triumph. It is depressing and exalting, inviting and repugnant. And its philosophy, like all great lies, is more than three-quarters true.
In this lengthy novel, Ayn Rand presents her ideal man and her philosophy of objectivism. The philosophy rejects mercy, altruism, charity, sacrifice, and service. These proclaimed virtues are portrayed as either weaknesses or as tools of subjugation. Her philosophy is a sort of extreme capitalism applied ...more
In this lengthy novel, Ayn Rand presents her ideal man and her philosophy of objectivism. The philosophy rejects mercy, altruism, charity, sacrifice, and service. These proclaimed virtues are portrayed as either weaknesses or as tools of subjugation. Her philosophy is a sort of extreme capitalism applied ...more
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Read in January, 2002
Lots of what people hear about The Fountainhead is driven by the personal desires people superimpose over the text, so I want to be as clear as I can in my review.
The book is not philosophy. It is a bildungsroman whose style loosely follows the Romanticism and Realism in 19th century novels. That is, the book is literature. Because it's an uneven work, I'll move from the bad to the good.
The novel is a study of the character of several individuals showing the consequences of the points o...more
The book is not philosophy. It is a bildungsroman whose style loosely follows the Romanticism and Realism in 19th century novels. That is, the book is literature. Because it's an uneven work, I'll move from the bad to the good.
The novel is a study of the character of several individuals showing the consequences of the points o...more
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Ayn Rand sets forth her philosophy of "objectivism." She shows it in this book, through one character named Peter Keating, an architect, who seemingly achieve greatness by copying others but somehow give the illusion of originality and creativity. In order to achieve "greatness," Keating was literally willing to sell anything, including his wife. Thus despite wealth and apparant achievement, his life was empty. Rand begins to formulate her values that altruism is an evil beca...more
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this review is bizarrely getting votes from people i don't know, so let me just reiterate that the text of the prediction is from mcsweenys, in case it's not clear that all i did was a little cutting and pasting.
instead of reading this book, just read ayn rand's superbowl prediction in mcsweeney's and you'll get the idea:
When he saw Bill B...more
instead of reading this book, just read ayn rand's superbowl prediction in mcsweeney's and you'll get the idea:
When he saw Bill B...more
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Read in November, 2007
In a novel for anyone interested in political ideals and philosophical thought, Ayn Rand writes the tantalizing tale of a strong-minded architect who refuses to conform to the society around him. Howard Roark builds buildings the way he wants to, and really doesn't care about what anyone else thinks. While other men around him copy various ancient Roman, Gothic, and Greek designs, he bases his buildings off nothing else but what's in his own head. His designs are completely organic. ...more
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Read in March, 2008
This is a brilliant book. I don't agree with all of Ms. Rand's philosophy certainly, but I can't help wishing that more books were written so intelligently.
For me, the main flaw of Ms. Rand's philosophy is that some of the philosophy the she espouses contradicts some realities that I consider fairly evident. Ms. Rand's heroes are self-made men and women. They begin in poverty, but drag themselves to the top of their professions through their determination and hard work. The implication o...more
For me, the main flaw of Ms. Rand's philosophy is that some of the philosophy the she espouses contradicts some realities that I consider fairly evident. Ms. Rand's heroes are self-made men and women. They begin in poverty, but drag themselves to the top of their professions through their determination and hard work. The implication o...more
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Read in September, 2007
Intense may be the best word for this book. Not in the sense that it was action packed and suspenseful, but that it was a heavy book that was a mind-load to read - an intense experience. Meticulously thought out and particularly designed, The Fountainhead clobbers you with Rand's philosophical doctrines. Sometimes this is amazing and revelatory, sometimes it's spelled out a little too much and you're left feeling like Rand's chewing your food for you. Overall though, it was amazing. Rand'...more


































