8 reasons why I love Ayn Rand

…and why you won’t convince me otherwise with platitudes:

First, I am an idealist.

I see absolutely no validity to the statement “The world is simply not like that.” The world is what we make it. Surely, there are things that do not hinge on our actions and decisions — but that is no excuse for dejection or ignorance. To face the world regardless of our own small space within it is the ultimate measure of who we are.

Second, I believe in equality.

I don’t accept doctrines that assign values to men and women at birth without their consent. I favor the sort of morality that gives a person the opportunity to become great based on his or her own talents and methods — not a prescribed morality of arbitrary rules and discrimination.

Third, I believe the inclusion of the phrase “pursuit of happiness” in the Declaration of Independence was the best idea our founding fathers ever had.

To say that happiness is a moral pursuit is not childish, nor is it “selfish.” There is a subtle truth to the idea that the world’s happiness as a whole is most easily achieved through individual means, whether this is culturally sanctioned or not. Consider this: is it more attainable for one person to have in their charge the fulfillment of exactly one person or of six billion and counting?

Fourth, I put my trust in human ingenuity.

There is nothing more beautiful to me than the mind in action, enacting transformations on the world. It is something unique about our species — not necessarily qualitatively so — but certainly quantitatively.

Fifth, I refuse to bow my head before human suffering.

I do not accept the doctrine that the world cannot be better. I hold hope the world is capable of functioning without systematic harm — and that the ideas of humanity can release that capability.

Sixth, I am absolutely amazed by human consciousness.

The first time I picked up an Ayn Rand novel, I wasn’t reading about economics or politics or even philosophy. I was reading about humanity — about the qualities of mind that characterize our daily interactions and the phenomenal power of the ability to think.

Seventh, I believe in true altruism.

I find utter delight in the happiness of others. I also find utter devastation in the thought that the man volunteering next to me might have been forced to do so or might be acting out of guilt rather than inherent pleasure.

Finally, I believe one can consider a text on an intellectual level without relying on the absolute qualities of the author.

I don’t give a damn whether or not Ayn Rand embodied her own philosophy. The words are not only hers; they are also mine. I read them; I consider them; I measure them; and I contemplate them where I believe they are important.

There are those who like to think they understand an idea if they know the politically correct terms in which to insult it.

But I challenge you all to think something out of the ordinary and truly consider the things that are so often rejected without assessment. If you cannot do that, you have no right to say you have read Ayn Rand.


E-mail: cmcglass@indiana.edu