Goddess of the Market
Ratings1
Average rating4
15
Ratings1
Average rating4
Worshipped by her fans, denounced by her enemies, and forever shadowed by controversy and scandal, the novelist and philosopher Ayn Rand was a powerful thinker whose views on government and markets shaped the conservative movement from its earliest days. Drawing on unprecedented access to Rand's private papers and the original, unedited versions of Rand's journals, Jennifer Burns offers a groundbreaking reassessment of this key cultural figure, examining her life, her ideas, and her impact on conservative political thought. Goddess of the Market follows Rand from her childhood in Russia through her meteoric rise from struggling Hollywood screenwriter to bestselling novelist, including the writing of her wildly successful The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged. Burns highlights the two facets of Rand's work that make her a perennial draw for those on the right: her promotion of capitalism, and her defense of limited government. Both sprang from her early, bitter experience of life under Communism, and became among the most deeply enduring of her messages, attracting a diverse audience of college students and intellectuals, business people and Republican Party activists, libertarians and conservatives. The book also traces the development of Rand's Objectivist philosophy and her relationship with Nathaniel Branden, her closest intellectual partner, with whom she had an explosive falling out in 1968. This extraordinary book captures the life of the woman who was a tireless champion of capitalism and the freedom of the individual, and whose ideas are still devoured by eager students, debated on blogs, cited by political candidates, and promoted by corporate tycoons. - Publisher.
Reviews with the most likes.
This was a very interesting read about Ayn Rand. Basically biographical, Jennifer Burns does a nice job of remaining extremely unbiased and non-judgmental throughout the book. I found the book to be rather readable. I hadn't before realized how intriguing and turbulent her life was, and though I heard she had become a bit crazy towards the end of her life, I didn't realize the extent, and the book filled in the details nicely.
This book, necessarily, also details the birth of the libertarian/anarchist movement of the 1960's, which I found more interesting than Rand herself. The interactions between the Conservative movement and the libertarian “hippies” were quite enjoyable - especially the draft card burning.
Her behavior towards the end of her life makes me want to read her works concerning intellectual property, which seemed to be a major difference between her and many anarchists of the time, who she accused of stealing her ideas. Since most of her work is derivative of previous philosophers, I wonder what her criteria were for using their ideas in her own dogma. Does an author have to be dead in order to use their works freely, or at least offer their ideas up to the public domain specifically?
I also enjoyed learning about Rand's personal political beliefs, like her pro-choice stance, opposition to the feminist movement, and opposition to the draft. The beliefs that clearly distinguished her from the conservative right were at many times stark.
Overall, a great book for anyone wanting to investigate the roots of Objectivism and Ayn Rand.
Books
7 booksIf you enjoyed this book, then our algorithm says you may also enjoy these.
