I am having a difficult time reconciling my thoughts and feelings about Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged. I should start by saying that I love this book. I was told once by someone I respect that I couldn’t consider myself well-read without having committed to Rand’s 1100+ page magnum opus. I possessed what turned out to be a faulty preconceived notion of Rand and her agenda. It isn’t the writing, which is not beautiful like Marquez, or poetic like Stegner that keeps the reader traveling. Rand’s mission is transparent. But put her philosophical beliefs aside, and you might be surprised by how much you like these characters and their story. However, can I consider myself well-read if that’s all I did is read the book? It took Rand two years to write Galt’s speech and our book group didn’t even discuss it. It is my opinion that we failed to rise to the challenge. What about the looters and moochers? Sanction of the victim? The John Galt Movement? Weren’t we moved by the strength of Dagny in an era when women were invisible? Whether we loved it or hated it, the book has an eerie relevance to our history currently being made. The Wall Street bailout! The role of our government. The need for social programs. Evicting slippery politicians. The right to create our own future.
Atlas Shrugged is the kind of book that gets people talking. Whether you are sitting in the airport or your doctor’s office reading this book, strangers will approach you to share the conversation. Some consider it a litmus test of sorts (the way we think of A Prayer for Owen Meany). So where did we go wrong? Was it the extended time needed to finish the book? Is our group one that doesn’t want to get too serious? Challenged? Would we rather get together to chat about life, etc. and not limit the discussion to books? We value each other as women and friends…do we need the books? Should we keep the epic stories off the list? How do we get back the opportunity to discuss a book that has changed the way people view their role and contribution in society? Philosophy aside…am I a producer or a looter? Where do I find my own balance among the extremes Rand presented?
2 comments:
Heartily agree the reflection about one's being predominantly producer or looter is an important one. And while not using those terms as we started the book, within the first hundred pages or so I was asking myself some of those questions.
You know how some (if not most) books come to you rather when you need them? I guess I was trying to pay attention to that during the course of this read, and have been and am in the process of making changes to the way in which I'm trying to approach life in general. Will be interesting for me to reflect on all this a year or two from now, for sure. Will I have become a different kind of producer?
As we watch our political and economic systems at work ... as we see the social consequences of systems run amok ... it seems like it's our responsibility to really grapple with those issues, at the very least in the context of the book. And to have an intellectually engaged conversation and perhaps not just as I tend to do, brood to myself. Not every book warrants this level of thought, to be sure, but certainly this one does.
And it warrants celebrating some of the things that we enjoy about each other that we found missing in the protagonists: compassion, altruism ... and laughter.
H.
Both Hayl and Michelle hit it on the head. And said it much better than I could.
I enjoyed the NY Times article as well but have to say, I was also turned off by people who ridiculed the "Oprah" books. I think some "popular" reads can not only be fun and instantly rewarding, but can really touch on our lives.
I hope that our group, with all our diversity and affection for each other, can be open to all genres. If we are as smart and witty as we like to think (ha ha!!), then it is up to us to respect each pick and give it our due diligence. (Life allowing...)
I mean, even My Little Blue Dress had some redeeming qualities, right?!
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