Godly Corp is on the rise

[crx girl]

well, you would've had to read the right things in order to recall that. or at least be somewhat familiar with literature.

[Galt]

Yes, he's only the main character in the most famous work of fiction on the planet (unless you count the Bible as fiction)

[GonzoStyle]

Atlas Shrugged is a wonderful book but not the greatest.

[crx girl]

i don't think it's the most famous either

[Galt]

Consult your Library of Congress and how it was rated the second most influential book history

[The Sleeper]

It's no To Kill a Mockingbird. Without that book we would all hate black people.

[Galt]

Without Atlas Shrugged, people would be saying that Stalin was the greatest human ever, and not Ronald Reagan.

[The Sleeper]

and what's wrong with that?

[crx girl]

people say reagan was the greatest human ever? what's wrong with them?

[GonzoStyle]

Crime & Punishment > Atlas Shrugged

Atlas coulda been a much better book if she put forth more effort into the characters, they are too one dimensional. Some of the scenarios are pretty far fetched. The biggest problem lies in the fact she held that book hostage against the editors, she threatened to take it elsewhere if anyone touched a single letter in the book. Knowing they would lose a ton of money, they agreed. The book starts off masterfully but then you realize it badly needed editing, it becomes extremely repetitive. And as great as the 90 page speech may be, it's also pretty far fetched. She like Marx and other idealists and great philosophical minds before her had ideals and visions of how society is, should be, or whatever but in the end she is not Karl Marx, because her work is fascinating but that's about it.

[Sir O]

Atlas Shrugged is my favorite book of all time. With that said, I agree with Gonzo.

As a work of fiction, it's flawed. It presents a black-and-white world where the protagonists are ultra-pure and the antagonists are ultra-corrupt. Rand would agree with this; she has said that her heroes are "man as they ought to be," not man as they are.

What I love about Ayn Rand's work is not necessarily the story, but the philosophy behind it. One of the greatest thinkers of the 20th century, Ayn Rand gave to us Objectivism, a scientific approach to metaphysics, politics, economics, etc. And while her personal biases and flaws DID get in the way of her own "objective" writings, what she left us with is an excellent blueprint which we can use to improve ourselves, and improve each other. I wish everyone in the world would read Ayn Rand's works, because you just CAN'T read Atlas or The Fountainhead and not realize that there's a world of opportunity out there.

Even when that opportunity is actively and purposely crushed by certain powers who maintain power by crushing others (had to get that in...).

[diceisgod]

Even when that opportunity is actively and purposely crushed by certain powers who maintain power by crushing others (had to get that in...).

Exactly the point of this thread.