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UnevenEdge

Is Atlas Shrugged worth reading?


bnmjy

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I have a friend who despises the politics of objectivism, but she loved this book. It seems most people who loathe the book never even held it within their hands. I'm not expecting a literary masterpiece, but I do want to see what all the fuss is about. Ayn Rand was an interesting woman. Although I disagree with her politics, I've always been the type of person who likes to explore opposing views.

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From what I can remember, she couldn't write dialogue to save a life if every semi-decent sentence was a thousand dollar donation to Doctors Without Borders. I recall I stopped in the first major exchange between characters.

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From what I can remember, she couldn't write dialogue to save a life if every semi-decent sentence was a thousand dollar donation to Doctors Without Borders. I recall I stopped in the first major exchange between characters.

 

Bad analogy; she hates charities.

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From what I can remember, she couldn't write dialogue to save a life if every semi-decent sentence was a thousand dollar donation to Doctors Without Borders. I recall I stopped in the first major exchange between characters.

 

Is that so? I know that there's an infamously long spiel some time in the book where the character is nothing but a mouthpiece for her views.

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Well, everyone thus far has said no. I'm still probably going to read it, just to say that I have read it. I had watched a video with a quote from The Fountainhead the other day and it had detailed her philosophy, which to me seemed quite cartoonish. I just like that neo-industrial revolutional business tycoon feeling Atlas Shrugged superficially has.

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*cracks open another folder* LOOK AT ME I'M POSTING IN ANOTHER FOLDER, MARVEL AT THE WONDER OF THIS RARE SIGHT AND BE AMAZED. i hate reading, despise it like books are my kryptonite, yet i was curious after i played Bioshock. i got about 15 pages in and got bored. BACK TO FFA *poof*

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We liked The Fountainhead. But We've never picked up any of her other works. She writes in terms of absolutes, and her characters are neither human nor dynamic. From what We've heard from people who have read it, Atlas Shrugged is worse in this department.; as has been repeated in this thread, the dialogue is blatantly her espousing her philosophy, with the barest of narratives tacked around that. The ideas it deals with are caricature and hyperbole, and anything of worth that can be gained from it can also be gained from common sense.

 

The only reason to spend your time on it would be if you really liked her views, or you want to have an in-depth, legitimate discussion with someone about it.

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Ayn Rand is severely over-rated (at least in the Conservative sphere).  I've tried reading both "The Fountainhead" and "Atlas Shrugged"  and they are both barely readable, self-serving drivel.  Rand's ideas have about as much depth and insight as current Republicans have.

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