Randian hero
The Randian hero is a ubiquitous figure in the fiction of 20th-century novelist and philosopher
Philosophical foundation
As a conception of the ideal man, the Randian hero has much in common with
Characteristics
The archetype of the Randian hero is the creative
Generally a Randian hero is characterized by radical individualism, moral resolution, intelligence/aptitude, self-control, emotional discipline, and (frequently, but not always) attractive physical characteristics in the eyes of other Randian heroes. Rand's heroes are tall, strong and upright; the females share slender figures, defiant stances and the impression of internal calmness, while the males are physically hard and supple, often with gray eyes.[10] Jerome Tuccille described U.S. President Gerald Ford as physically exemplifying the Randian hero—"tall, blond, clear-eyed, ruggedly handsome and well-built".[11]
Author Stephen Newman compares the Randian hero to the concept of the Übermensch created by philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, saying that "the Randian hero is really Nietzsche's superman in the guise of the entrepreneur".[13]
Specific instances
Although the archetype of the Randian hero appears in Rand's earliest work (notably in Night of January 16th's Bjorn Faulkner and We the Living's Leo Kovalensky),[14][15] its best known examples appear in Rand's mature work, specifically from the novella Anthem (1938) onward.
Anthem
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Anthem, set in a dystopian future where free will has been eliminated and individual excellence is considered a disease, is told through the eyes of Equality 7–2521, a man with a quick and inquisitive mind who is forced by the leaders of his collectivist society to work as a street sweeper.[16] Witnessing a rebel being burned at the stake, Equality recognizes a common spirit.[17] In defiance of the edicts followed by his fellows, he manages to rediscover electricity, a technology that had been lost by the dystopian society of the story. He and his lover flee the collectivist society, renaming each other "The Unconquered" and "The Golden One" respectively, and together they build a stronghold of individualism from which they and like-minded individuals can begin their struggle for freedom.[16]
The Fountainhead
Ayn Rand created the Randian hero in earnest in the character of Howard Roark in The Fountainhead.[18] An architect, Roark conflicts with his profession's establishment on multiple occasions. The early stages of the novel begin with Roark being expelled from university because he refused to design in traditional styles. Throughout his career, he refuses to design according to any vision apart from his own. The architects' professional body scorns him for not paying "proper respect" to tradition, yet in the end, he triumphs.
Atlas Shrugged
The protagonist of Atlas Shrugged is
In considering the character of Dagny Taggart as Randian hero, scholar Edward Younkins remarked that while she evoked passion and admiration, she was inspirational rather than motivational.[20] Younkins found the concept of the Randian hero appealing, but out of reach for someone without Taggart's clear context for action. Rand's novels depict a world where anyone can be excellent out of choice alone, which Younkins argued was in tension "with the knowledge that we do not transcend our context … and that context is almost always owned by the crowd".[20]
Influence and criticism
As Rand's fiction and non-academic philosophical works became popular especially in the 1980s, her fans would often claim that attributes of these heroes could be found in themselves, or should be.
Early self-esteem psychologist Nathaniel Branden, the most prominent of Rand's initial adopters, later renounced aspects of objectivist literature and acknowledged "the accusation that we are against feelings, against emotions" as well as other criticisms of such a celebration of ultra-rationalism being dangerous:
- If, in page after page of The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged, you show someone being heroic by ruthlessly setting feelings aside, and if you show someone being rotten and depraved by, in effect, diving headlong into his feelings and emotions, and if that is one of your dominant methods of characterization, repeated again and again, then it doesn't matter what you profess, in abstract philosophy, about the relationship of reason and emotion. You have taught people: repress, repress, repress.[21]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d Wheeler 1986, pp. 95–96
- ^ a b Gladstein 1999, p. 8
- ^ Wheeler 1986, p. 84
- ^ a b Wheeler 1986, p. 88
- ^ Gladstein 1999, p. 48
- ^ a b Klinghoffer, Judith Apter (January 19, 2009). "Le Monde Diplomatique Discovers Ayn Rand". History News Network.
- ISBN 0-672-52725-1.
- ^ Gladstein 1999, p. 113
- ^ Cody 1973
- ^ Gladstein 1999, p. 26
- ^ Tuccille 2002, pp. 116–117
- ^ a b Žižek 1998, pp. 107–108
- ^ Newman 1984, p. 26)
- ^ Gladstein 1999, p. 51
- ^ Sirota, Joseph (January 17, 2002). "Feeling Randian". OC Weekly. Village Voice Media. Retrieved February 10, 2009.
- ^ a b Gladstein 1999, p. 49
- ^ Gladstein 1999, p. 27
- ^ Sciabarra 1995, p. 109
- ^ Paxton, Michael (Director) (1997). Ayn Rand: A Sense of Life (Documentary film).
- ^ a b Younkins 2007, p. 249
- ^ Nathaniel Branden. "The Benefits and Hazards of the Philosophy of Ayn Rand: A Personal Statement". Archived from the original on 2011-07-17.
Works cited
- ISBN 0-313-30321-5.
- Cody, John (November 1973). "Ayn Rand's Promethean Heroes". Reason (5): 30–35.
- Newman, Stephen (1984). Liberalism at Wits' End. Ithaca: ISBN 0-8014-1747-3.
- ISBN 0-271-01441-5.
- ISBN 0-471-39906-X.
- Wheeler, Jack (1986). "Rand and Aristotle: A Comparison of Objectivist and Aristotelian Ethics". In OCLC 9392804.
- Younkins, Edward (2007). Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged. Aldershot: ISBN 978-0-7546-5549-7.
- ISBN 0-8223-2097-5.