# Ayn Rand: Where should I start? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 15, 2007, 8:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ayn-rand-where-should-i-start/396012 "2007-03-15T08:01:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2007, 8:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ayn-rand-where-should-i-start/396012/1 "2007-03-15T08:01:17Z")
I’ll admit, I’m a little intimidated by the size of _Atlas Shrugged_, considering I’ve never read the author before. _Shogun_, though, was the first Clavell book I read and I loved it (I understand the former is probably heavier reading.) ---
**Author:** ![Quiddity\_Glomfuster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/c4cdca/32.png) [@Quiddity\_Glomfuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quiddity_Glomfuster)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2007, 8:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ayn-rand-where-should-i-start/396012/2 "2007-03-15T08:11:46Z")
Read it. It will annoy you. At the end, you’ll toss it across the room. ---
**Author:** ![Sophistry\_and\_Illusion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b3f665/32.png) [@Sophistry\_and\_Illusion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sophistry_and_Illusion)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2007, 8:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ayn-rand-where-should-i-start/396012/3 "2007-03-15T08:21:58Z")
[QUOTE=Quiddity Glomfuster] Read it. It will annoy you. At the end, you’ll toss it across the room. [/QUOTE] Reminds me of Dorothy Parker: “This book is not to be tossed lightly aside, but to be hurled with great force.” Kinda how I feel about the Ayn Rand corpus. But I’m sure others will be along soon with other (more constructive) replies. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2007, 8:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ayn-rand-where-should-i-start/396012/4 "2007-03-15T08:35:20Z")
Dig up a copy of _Anthem_. It’s short and pretty much encapsulates Rand’s beliefs. ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2007, 9:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ayn-rand-where-should-i-start/396012/5 "2007-03-15T09:00:43Z")
Even better, dust off a copy of Rush’s seminal _2112_ ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2007, 9:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ayn-rand-where-should-i-start/396012/6 "2007-03-15T09:17:44Z")
[QUOTE=Quiddity Glomfuster] Read it. It will annoy you. At the end, you’ll toss it across the room. [/QUOTE] Right. Read it for campy howling laughter; it’s the most absurdly selfrighteous pomposity ever commited to paper and ink. It’s “Trapped in the Closet”-style ridiculosity. For a hoot and a holler, rent you a copy of _The Fountainhead,_ starring Patricia Neal and Gary Cooper. Recently made available on DVD. The director, one of the greatest directors of the American cinema, King Vidor, obviously had a great time putting across Rand’s campy monstrosities with a totally straight face; all his commentary is subtle and sly. (Note the pneumatic drill that Cooper is, um, sporting the first time Neal catches sight of him, for example.) I cannot recommend it enough. ---
**Author:** ![kung\_fu\_lola](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f4b2a3/32.png) [@kung\_fu\_lola](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kung_fu_lola)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2007, 11:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ayn-rand-where-should-i-start/396012/7 "2007-03-15T11:21:04Z")
I like Ayn Rand as much as [Officer Barbrady](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Officer_Barbrady) does. ---
**Author:** ![Meatros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Meatros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meatros)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2007, 12:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ayn-rand-where-should-i-start/396012/8 "2007-03-15T12:07:30Z")
[QUOTE=Bryan Ekers] Dig up a copy of _Anthem_. It’s short and pretty much encapsulates Rand’s beliefs. [/QUOTE] I second that. I think the book is only 100 pages or something. It’s decent and won’t make you nausiated…unlike her longer works… ---
**Author:** ![VarlosZ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d78d45/32.png) [@VarlosZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VarlosZ)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2007, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ayn-rand-where-should-i-start/396012/9 "2007-03-15T12:33:41Z")
Yeah, _Anthem_ is probably the best place to start. If you really dislike it (a strong possibility) then you won’t have to waste your time on _The Fountainhhead_ or _Atlas Shrugged_. Of the latter two, I loved _The Fountainhead_ when I read it, but that was a long time ago, and I’d probably feel differently today. I was still a fan of Rand’s philosophy when I read _Atlas Shrugged_, but I couldn’t force myself to read more than half of it. I mean, come on, the bad guys have names like “Wesley _Mouch_” and “Orren _Boyle_,” and they’re just barely more sympathetic than a tribe of nomadic, hunchback, baby-murdering cannibals. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2007, 12:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ayn-rand-where-should-i-start/396012/10 "2007-03-15T12:39:38Z")
I was never fond of her novels; I think she was a terrible fiction writer. But I admire her philosphy when expressed as political essays, many from a newsletter once published in her later days. These were once made into compilations, such as _The Virtue of Selfishness._ It’s easier reading – you can take it an article at a time – includes other writers (Branden, Greenspan) and avoids all the fictional baggage. Try those first, if you can find them. ---
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2007, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ayn-rand-where-should-i-start/396012/11 "2007-03-15T12:45:13Z")
A Rand-fan but not Rand-worshipper here. Read ANTHEM first. If you want more, watch THE FOUNTAINHEAD. THEN you’re ready for the big time. Open ATLAS SHRUGGED at random spots till you find something that looks interesting, read a bit till you become intriqued enough to see what led up to this, then go to the beginning & read from there. That’s how I read AS the first time. ---
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2007, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ayn-rand-where-should-i-start/396012/12 "2007-03-15T12:45:43Z")
A Rand-fan but not Rand-worshipper here. Read ANTHEM first. If you want more, watch THE FOUNTAINHEAD. THEN you’re ready for the big time. Open ATLAS SHRUGGED at random spots till you find something that looks interesting, read a bit till you become intriqued enough to see what led up to this, then go to the beginning & read from there. That’s how I read AS the first time. ---
**Author:** ![JThunder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e95f7d/32.png) [@JThunder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JThunder)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2007, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ayn-rand-where-should-i-start/396012/13 "2007-03-15T12:58:52Z")
Keep in mind that Ayn Rand did not have access to a dictionary when she crafted her works. That is why her definitions of “selfishness” and “altriusm” bear no resemblance to reality. ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2007, 1:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ayn-rand-where-should-i-start/396012/14 "2007-03-15T13:19:22Z")
[QUOTE=JThunder] Keep in mind that Ayn Rand did not have access to a dictionary when she crafted her works. [/QUOTE] Nor apparently did she have access to a blue pencil. I read both TF and AS a couple of years ago. I love the film version of TF and had to read the book to see if it was anywhere near as swoony. I was not disappointed, although there were moments that I found genuinely moving. I thought the first third of AS, up to the first run of the John Galt Line was a good read and the second third, up to Dagny’s discovery of the hidden valley was all right. The final third was a screed and I couldn’t force myself to read Galt’s radio address beyond about a page. Supposedly Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie are developing a film trilogy based on AS split along these lines. I doubt I’ll ever read either book again but I’m not sorry I did. ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2007, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ayn-rand-where-should-i-start/396012/15 "2007-03-15T13:35:41Z")
[QUOTE=Cisco] I’ll admit, I’m a little intimidated by the size of _Atlas Shrugged_, considering I’ve never read the author before. _Shogun_, though, was the first Clavell book I read and I loved it (I understand the former is probably heavier reading.) [/QUOTE] I think it depends on why you’re reading her. If it is to learn of her philosophy, then the nonfiction essays are better. If it is to immerse yourself in her writing style and find out how she believes her philosophy would apply to the real world, then the novels are better. \*Atlas Shrugged \* is sort of both put together. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2007, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ayn-rand-where-should-i-start/396012/16 "2007-03-15T13:52:01Z")
[QUOTE=Otto] The final third was a screed and I couldn’t force myself to read Galt’s radio address beyond about a page. [/QUOTE] And the sucker runs what…86 pages? For just that bit. Total waste of paper. I once was a great Rand fan, but **1 Corinthians 13:11**. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![HazelNutCoffee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ac91a4/32.png) [@HazelNutCoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HazelNutCoffee)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2007, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ayn-rand-where-should-i-start/396012/17 "2007-03-15T15:33:25Z")
I slogged through _Atlas Shrugged_ and mildly enjoyed it. Parts of the story are interesting, and you can skim through the boring bits without losing track of the plot. It didn’t make me want to read any of her other stuff, though. ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2007, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ayn-rand-where-should-i-start/396012/18 "2007-03-15T15:40:00Z")
If you’ve finished High School, it may be too late. Ayn was quite popular with the AV Club/Huge Sliderule crowd back in the day. I made it through\* Atlas Shrugged\*. But then LOTR came out in paperback. I’ve re-read the latter several times. (I second the recommendation of the _Fountainhead_ movie. High camp!) ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Fight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/90ced4/32.png) [@Cat\_Fight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Fight)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2007, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ayn-rand-where-should-i-start/396012/19 "2007-03-15T16:10:15Z")
Read **Anthem**. Then read **Fahrenheit 451**. If you’d still like to read Rand’s fiction, by all means, do. ---
**Author:** ![Subterraneanus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Subterraneanus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Subterraneanus)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2007, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ayn-rand-where-should-i-start/396012/20 "2007-03-15T18:04:54Z")
A better question is, _Ayn Rand: Why should I start?_ Snarky, yes—but her Randness was nothing if not snarky. I would argue she was nothing but snarky. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ayn-rand-where-should-i-start/396012.md?page=2)