What did Ayn Rand believe in?

Question

What did Ayn Rand believe in?

Answer 1

If her philosophy can be summed into one word, and one word alone; human selfishness.

she argued that altruism was impossible, and that only by playing on people's selfish desires would it ultimately result in a truly utopic society.  Here is an example on how ethics plays on selfishness;

"treat others the way you want to be treated."

That ethical value, plays on human selfishness for the sake of maintaining the rights of humanity, and she frequently argued, that a mentality of selfishness that actively catered to other people's selfish motives, while at the same time being selfish yourself in a way of thinking that said "I will do no harm, because people will harm ME" was the best way to think and live.  She argued frequently for American capitalism because ultimately capitalism is rooted in the fact that since people are not altruistic, only by having an economic system in which people are actively competing, and their selfish interests actively and frequently compromised, can you truly have an "advanced and enlightened society."

I read a few of her books while in the library in college, which is part of the reason I became interested (but haven't played yet) the game "Bioshock."  Bioshock, in a way, is an answer to Ayn Rand's philosophy; if people were h**l bent in having her elitist, selfish, 100% capitalist world where "only the best" are catered to, it would indeed result in a catastrophe like the city of Rapture.

There has to be at least AT LEAST SOME degree of altruism, for a society to function, because any motive drawn entirely from selfish intents, will ultimately fail.  When you draw determination only from yourself, and for yourself, it wears you out, and slowly, it even begins to kill, because a person is a finite, limited being, and therefore any selfish intent is finite and limited.  If you draw strength from outside yourself, from the need to help others, that strength does not have any limits, regardless of how hopeless a situation may seem.

Its easy to be determined when you are selfish, when you have ill gotten gain and a fortune you do not deserve.  Pisses me off how white people constantly blow each other with how strong they are and their capacity to endure suffering when, in 9/11 everyone here was crying like a pansy.  I know at a certain college in Nampa Idaho they were anyway.  A person can only be said to be strong when they hang in there when there is no reason to, and they have a very good reason to be determined.

A spoiled, priveleged brat though..... that's something else.

The world of Rapture, is ultimately what would result if everyone on this planet had the thinking and attitudes of the priveleged sociopaths found the world over.  If THEY had their way, "the best" this "the best" that, if everyone acted like they acted, that is, if the whole entire world was made up of people like you see in 90210, the whole world, would collapse the way the city of Rapture did in "Bioshock."  See, that is why I found that game so interesting; the catastrophe of Rapture, is something that can, and WILL happen, if most people on this planet became selfish egomaniacal brats.

The deterioration of American cities across this country, the urban decay, it is all a direct consequence of Randian philosophy applied.  If NYC is falling apart, its because its priveleged people are all Randians, just like the citizens of Rapture.  Who knows, in the future maybe a stranger from a foreign country will come to America, and encounter in this country a nightmarish place, while the rest of the world has already achieved utopia.

Ayn Rand, was not a bad person; she believed in what she believed in because the reality is, there aren't enough "nice people" out there to do what is necessary, and only with a capitalist system can you compromise the selfish enough to, again, create a, more or less, harmonious society, unlike the Soviet Union.  That is, the only way you can get most people to behave ethically, is by force.  A dictator has to have an iron grip, and literally force people to do things like "no drinking!"  or "no drug habit!"  Rand argued, that left to their own devices, people will do that all the same.  But nevertheless at the same time people also deserve freedom.

You can not force someone to act ethically without being a dictator.  She said that lack of ethics in a capitalist society were a necessary sacrifice so that people could enjoy freedom.  So.... if you live in a "moral" society, you live in a prison, but if you live in a "free" society, you don't live in a prison but precisely because its free someone is going to s***w you over, meaning you are not safe.  Nevertheless, it is better to have freedom and be vigilant, she argued, than to live in a prison like the Soviet Union where I believe she came from.

Many people misunderstood her; she wasn't trying to advocate a selfish, braty society just letting people know "you're selfish, accept it, do your best, and try not to harm anyone with your selfishness."  She argued not to pursue the impossible dream of being "truly altruistic" or the dream of a utopia.

Again though, her logic was also flawed because, you want to know what the world would look like if Ayn Rand had her way?

Play Bioshock.  Bioshock shows us, that a video game can be more than just a video game; because the philosophical underpinnings are too complicated and confusing to state in words, the best way to express the disaster that would result if Ayn Rand had her way, is by, well, making it into interactive entertainment, namely, Bioshock.

If you want a crash course, simplified version of Randian philosophy, and own either a 360 or really fast rig, then just go rent or buy "Bioshock."

Its all there man.

sorry I couldn't be of any more help; I don't think my explanation was clear.

Answer 2

writing a bunch of soft philosophy that does not academically rank.

Answer 3

From Wikipedia:

    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.

    ÃƒÂ¢Ã‚€Â”Ayn Rand, Atlas Shrugged 35th anniversary edition[4]

Ayn Rand characterized Objectivism as a philosophy "for living on earth" grounded in reality and aimed at defining man's nature and the nature of the world in which he lives. Rand presented her philosophy through her novels The Fountainhead, Atlas Shrugged, and other works. She elaborated on her ideas in The Objectivist Newsletter, The Objectivist, The Ayn Rand Letter, Introduction to Objectivist Epistemology, and other non-fiction books.[5]

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Unfortunately, Ayn Rand ignored the work of the animal behaviorists like Lorenz and Tinbergen and the psychology of Skinner in interpreting  human nAture as objective reality. But she made the first real start post-Darwin in viewing man's nature against a proper framework of observation. IMO

Animal studies objectively establish man's nature as individual only within a group and Behaviorism objectively establishes there are limitations on choices available due to man's social and psycho-social nature.

Answer 4

Summed up in one word:

We should be proud of the traits which have fallen out of favor in this christianized era we live in.  Conversely, we should be skeptical of the traits the church expects man to blindly accept as good and virtuous.

Answer 5

What does it matter?

If you appreciate her philosophies, will you adopt her other beliefs too?

If you reject her philosophies, will you reject all her beliefs?

Be your own philosopher... piece together your own body of knowledge... adapt others philosophies into your own.

Answer 6

Intolerance.

Answer 7

She was a libertarian politically and an atheist religiously.  She is considered the founder of the Objectivist philosophical movement, which incorporates libertarianism and atheism, but also goes further.  It looks good on paper, but Objectivists tend to be a bit too cult-like for my tastes.  I'm really not into worshiping Saint Ayn.  :-)

Check out some sources on Objectivism on the web.  Her novels tend to be a bit on the "War & Peace" side with respect to length, but "Atlas Shrugged" is a pretty good example of her work if you were to only read one of her books.

Answer 8

Another long rant by dmaud56.

In the end, the answer to understanding Rand (he says) is to play a game called Bioshock - a game he has never played (!?!?).

Answer 9

Herself, and only herself. Poor Miss Rand.

Answer 10

Read The Fountainhead.  Do not cheat and watch the movie.