Book Review: The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand

I thought it was only appropriate that my first book review is about my favorite book of all time! I hope you enjoy the video and feel free to ask me any questions or post any comments and video responses!
Thanks for watching!!
-Maria

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• Ayn Rand
• the Fountainhead
• book review
• maria alexei

[thazzchair]

I've been hesitant to read books by Ayn Rand because of things I've read about her philosophy that really I don't agree with--specifically her egoism and opposition of altruism. But at the same time, I like the ideas of individualism and integrity you focus on here a lot. How do those two sides of the coin balance out in the book (or in Atlas Shrugged)? Maybe I'm resisting Rand too much, but I can't shake the feeling that I'll disagree with her too much to enjoy her writing.

[audreymereu]

@thazzchair Great question! Honestly, if I had been exposed to some of Rand's ideas before reading the book, I may have hesitated too. There is so much misrepresentation of her philosophy out there, it's easy to be apprehensive.Rand values egotism, but that is only a gross generalization and sounds bad initially, but what critics don't say is that she redefines the concept entirely, it is not the original meaning of the word she's talking about. (continued)

[audreymereu]

@thazzchair Your other example, altruism: It sounds so bad initially, but if you actually "hear" her out entirely, you'll find out she is NOT against private charity (for instance), she is only against compulsory, state-mandated charity (communism is probably a great example). This also ties into her support of capitalism and the idea that the money you earn is yours to do whatever you want with it, not to give it in taxes or mandatory charity. The only way to know is to read her works. :)

[lovenpeace1000]

was it hard to understand? I am a junior in highschool and have been wanting to read this book but I am intimidated by its length

[audreymereu]

@lovenpeace1000 It is a very well-written, articulate book. I think you won't have any difficulty understanding it. It definitely is a long book, but don't let that scare you because it is very entertaining and you should be able to go through it relatively quickly.

[ObjectivistAesthetic]

My favorite book. Very nice to meet you.

[Swmorgan77]

@thazzchair I'd suggest that you don't really know if you disagree until you've read Atlas Shrugged... probably at least twice. I recommend the audio it was much easier for me.

[Jacob2Israel]

thanks for the disclaimer... with that said- great review!

[MrLearntoread]

Its funny how 'copying' is frowned upon so much by the post Beaux Arts school of thought. You could say the same thing about a group of people 'copying' each other by dressing in suits or speaking the same language. Rands's egoism has only served to promote current architects who invent their own dress and language, and when it comes to design, Rands philosophy suggests not to learn from 3,000+ years of collective history, but rather learn from their own limited shit experience instead.

[ar4216]

The Ayn Rand Cult is another great book. It's by Jeff Walker and should be required reading for anyone who falls under the spell of Rand's bullshit.

[KyleSkullz]

Great review. I may take the time to read it sometime soon. I watched the movie a couple of months ago and LOVED it. Howard Roarks speech in the courtroom near the end of the film is one of the most powerful monologues I've ever seen in a movie. Very inspiring.

[TheBookerSmith]

You sound a lot like counselor troi from star trek, haha.

[TheAmericanFreeBird]

Wow I love also ayn rand, and I'm in a objectivist club and we use to talk about many things, included this book. Thank you for the video, I like you very much. How old are you ?