I’ve never read Atlas Shrugged or The Fountainhead, and I know very little about its author Ayn Rand, so upon discovering that today 2nd February marks the anniversary of her birth I decided to do some research into her.
What I came away with was the distinct impression of a woman who was very self absorbed and extremely controversial and the quotes that follow in this blog demonstrate her philosophies perfectly. As such, these are perhaps not quotes that enlighten, or are humorous, one might even bring a gasp of shock, but this is Ayn’s blog and the words that follow are hers.
“The question isn’t who is going to let me; it’s who is going to stop me.”
“If you don’t know, the thing to do is not to get scared, but to learn.”
“The smallest minority on earth is the individual. Those who deny individual rights cannot claim to be defenders of minorities.”
“I could die for you. But I couldn’t, and wouldn’t, live for you.”
“The man who does not value himself, cannot value anything or anyone.”
“Don’t fool yourself, my dear. You’re much worse than a bitch. You’re a saint. Which shows why saints are dangerous and undesirable.”
“If you tell a beautiful woman that she is beautiful, what have you given her? It’s no more than a fact and it has cost you nothing. But if you tell an ugly woman that she is beautiful, you offer her the great homage of corrupting the concept of beauty. To love a woman for her virtues is meaningless. She’s earned it, it’s a payment, not a gift. But to love her for her vices is a real gift, unearned and undeserved. To love her for her vices is to defile all virtue for her sake – and that is a real tribute of love, because you sacrifice your conscience, your reason, your integrity and your invaluable self-esteem.”
“A government is the most dangerous threat to man’s rights: it holds a legal monopoly on the use of physical force against legally disarmed victims.”
“It is not advisable to venture unsolicited opinions. You should spare yourself the embarrassing discovery of their exact value to your listener.”
“[The Native Americans] didn’t have any rights to the land and there was no reason for anyone to grant them rights which they had not conceived and were not using…. What was it they were fighting for, if they opposed white men on this continent? For their wish to continue a primitive existence, their “right” to keep part of the earth untouched, unused and not even as property, just keep everybody out so that you will live practically like an animal, or maybe a few caves above it. Any white person who brought the element of civilization had the right to take over this continent.”
Ayn was obviously a woman who had the courage of her convictions and who did not hesitate to express her opinion no matter how unpopular it may seem now. The surprising thing is that the final quote was from a Q and A session following her Address To The Graduating Class Of The United States Military Academy at West Point, New York, March 6, 1974, a mere 42 years ago and not from the dim and distant history of inherent white supremacy.
Whatever her personal philosophies, Ayn’s writings are highly thought of and Atlas Shrugged is considered one of the top Dystopian novels ever written.
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