As I wrote about in the previous blog post, Atlas Shrugged and, subsequently, all of the other works that Ayn Rand produced have changed my life. My interest in her led me to the Ayn Rand Institute where I interned, joined the Objectivist Academic Center, attended conferences, and even became a student leader for them. I learned more about Rand’s philosophy as well as how to communicate and write more effectively. It served as my saving grace away from my constantly learning what not to do or think in college. I will forever be grateful for my opportunities there, and I still tune in to their podcasts every week!
Once I had finished consuming all of Rand’s works, I felt comfortable enough considering myself an Objectivist. Objectivism is defined briefly in the “About the Author” section of the Appendix in Atlas Shrugged, where Rand writes: “My philosophy, in essence, is the concept of man as a heroic being, with his own happiness as the moral purpose of his life, with productive achievement as his noblest activity, and reason as his only absolute.” To break that down a bit more take a look at the Ayn Rand Lexicon online where she breaks down the branches of Objectivism further in “Introducing Objectivism” in The Objectivist Newsletter (Aug. 1962):
My philosophy, Objectivism, holds that:
- Reality exists as an objective absolute—facts are facts, independent of man’s feelings, wishes, hopes or fears.
- Reason (the faculty which identifies and integrates the material provided by man’s senses) is man’s only means of perceiving reality, his only source of knowledge, his only guide to action, and his basic means of survival.
- Man—every man—is an end in himself, not the means to the ends of others. He must exist for his own sake, neither sacrificing himself to others nor sacrificing others to himself. The pursuit of his own rational self-interest and of his own happiness is the highest moral purpose of his life.
- The ideal political-economic system is laissez-faire capitalism. It is a system where men deal with one another, not as victims and executioners, nor as masters and slaves, but as traders, by free, voluntary exchange to mutual benefit. It is a system where no man may obtain any values from others by resorting to physical force, and no man may initiate the use of physical force against others. The government acts only as a policeman that protects man’s rights; it uses physical force only in retaliation and only against those who initiate its use, such as criminals or foreign invaders. In a system of full capitalism, there should be (but, historically, has not yet been) a complete separation of state and economics, in the same way and for the same reasons as the separation of state and church.
She also includes in “Philosophy: Who Needs It” from her book, Philosophy: Who Needs It that “[t]he fifth and last branch of philosophy is esthetics, the study of art, which is based on metaphysics, epistemology and ethics.”
In essence, I want to be clear to my readers that I am, in the crudest sense, an atheist who believes in capitalism. And all of my work, motivation, and subsequent goals since I was fifteen have stemmed from those values that I have held close to me. Anyone who is offended by such views is free to put my work down and forget about my existence. But for those who share my views, welcome and enjoy my work.
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Views Expressed Disclaimer: The postings on this site are my own and do not necessarily represent the postings, strategies, or opinions of American Wordsmith, LLC. Please also know that while I consider myself an Objectivist and my work is inspired by Objectivism, it is not nor should it be considered Objectivist since I am not the creator of the philosophy. For more information about Ayn Rand’s philosophy visit: aynrand.org.