Rosnisha - Atlas

Where is Ayn Rand’s John Galt, When America Needs Him Most?

Rosnisha D. Stevenson PhD Student in Educational Leadership College of Education Prairie View A&M University English Teacher Mayde Creek High School Katy Independent School District Houston, Texas

William Allan Kritsonis, PhD Professor PhD Program in Educational Leadership Prairie View A&M University Member of the Texas A&M University System William H. Parker Leadership Academy Hall of Honor (2008) Prairie View A&M University Visiting Lecturer (2005) Oxford Round Table University of Oxford, Oxford England Distinguished Alumnus (2004) Central Washington University College of Education and Professional Studies

ABSTRACT Ayn Rand introduced the world to her philosophy of “Objectivism” and her strong political views through her literature and the Ayn Rand Institute. Through Ayn Rand’s novels, The Virtues of Selfishness and Atlas Shrugged, this article will examine the issues in Atlas Shrugged and those that the American Government is facing today.

Introduction Ayn Rand was an immigrant from Russia who witnessed first hand the injustice that the government and others can bring upon those that are hard working individuals. Through this personal experience, Ayn Rand moved to the United States, were she remained until her death. Experiencing the wrongs in Russia helped Rand develop her theory of “Objectivism” and the idea that one must be selfish to some extent in order to succeed in life. Through her novels, Atlas Shrugged and The Virtues of Selfishness, Rand introduces us to her philosophy and line of thinking. Purpose of the Article The purpose of this article is to look at the issues within society, the American government and the economy on Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged with the issues that the United States government is facing now. The question that was asked throughout Atlas Shrugged and the question that we as a nation should ask ourselves now is not “Who is John Gault”, but “Where is John Gault Now?” Where is John Gault now when the United States of America, one

of the greatest nations in this country, is slowly failing apart, with the Looters of the world playing a key role in its destruction and downfall. Key Players in Atlas Shrugged Dagney Taggert – Dagney Taggert is the strong female character in the novel. She is the vice president of her families company, Taggart Transcontinental. She is committed to the cause of the railroad and is an incredible business women, the better businessman between her brother and her. She falls in love with men who are unattainable but who are attracted to her because she is so strong willed. She discovers a motor and goes on a search for the inventor of the motor, landing her in the valley of the minds, and with the infamous John Gault. James Taggert – James Taggert is Dagney’s brother and the president of Taggert Transcontinental. Jim is Dagney’s foil in the novel, they are completely different when it comes to the ways of running the family business, Taggert Transcontinental. Jim becomes one of the leaders of the Looters, the people in the world who wanted to succeed in life by lying and cheating, and cutting out the hard working man. James Taggert was born into wealth, so he was use to having everything handed to him without having to lift a finger. When Jim discovered who John Gault was, he set out to destroy him, even though destroying one of the greatest minds in the world would destroy everything. Hank Rearden – Hank Rearden is the owner of Rearden Steel. Rearden is the caretaker of his ungrateful family, which includes his mother, his brother Philip, and his wife Lillian. Hank is a hard working, self-made man whose family takes total advantage of him and don’t understand the business that he worked so hard to achieve. We see his wife for who she really is, when she sells Dagney a bracelet that Hank gave her, that was made of the first steel from Rearden Steel.

Dagney, being the person that she is, was the only other person, other than Hank, that was able to appreciate the steel bracelet. Hank Rearden is the last one to leave his life behind and join the strike with the others. John Gault – John Gault is the man that the story takes place around. Gault has what is seemed to be one of the greatest minds of all time. He is the one who starts and leads the strike of the mind, getting other greats to join him in his cause. Francisco d’Anconia – Francisco is a childhood friend of Dagney and James, and the third student of the Hugh Akston and Dr. Robert Stadler. He was the classmate of John Gault and Ragnar Danneskjold. He is the first person to join John Gault’s strike, costing him his friend and his love, Dagney Taggart. By eluding everyone into thinking that he is this notorious playboy, he is able to keep his business, d’Anconia Copper out of the hands of the Looters. Eddie Willers – Eddie is a childhood friend of Dagney, Jim and Francisco. He is also Dagney’s hard working assistant at Taggart Transcontinental who next to Dagney, is totally committed to the Railroad and is runnings. Eddie is the person who not knowing gives out valuable information concerning Dagney, to those who are trying to destroy her and everything she stands for. Lillian Rearden – Hank Rearden’s wife who makes a deal with the devil and has no qualms in admitting that she is out to destroy her husband. She is self absorbed and never really understands the full meaning and value of the steel bracelet that Hank gives her. Ellis Wyatt – Wyatt is an oil tycoon who doesn’t give in to the Looters. In his efforts to leave nothing behind for the Looters to take, he sets fire to his wells, creating the symbol known to all as Wyatt’s torch.

Ragnar Danneskjold – Classmate of John Gault and Francisco d’Anconia. He joins the strike and steals from the Looters and gives back to the people on strike. Robert Stadler – Professor to the three great minds at the State Science Institute. Hank Akston – Hank is a great philosopher who decides to join the strike and work as a shortorder cook. Wesley Mouch – Wesley is an economic advisor who betrays Hank Rearden and drives more and more people into the strike through his unwavering policies. Mouch is the total opposite of the fictional hero, Robin Hood, he believes in taking from the rich, but the hardworking rich, and giving it to the lazy rich that are willing to make deals to get ahead. Orren Boyle – Oren Boyle is a horrible business man who is unable to fill his orders in a timely fashion for Taggart Transcontinental, causing a rift between Dagney, who is about the business at hand, and his friend and Dagney’s brother, James Taggart, who keeps him in business. He eventually uses his connections with the government to obtain and take away Rearden Steele from Hank Rearden. Cherryl Brooks – Cherryl is the wife of James Taggart who doesn’t really know the man she marries. Jim sets out to destroy her and the good that she represents. Once she discovers who she married, she kills herself. Own Kellogg – Owen is an employee at Taggart Transcontinental who Dagney sets out to promote for all of his hard work, but he suddenly retires when she makes the offer.

Key Players in the United States Government The United States Government is now going through one of the worst economic crisis American history since the Great Depression. When one looks at the economy, they turn to the key people who are in charge of the running of the welfare of our great nation, the President of the United States and his administration. Over the past eight years, the United States has found itself digging her way further and further in financial despair, relying on the great minds of the government to pull her out. In the last eight years, we as a nation have had several key players playing role with the economy. The Bush Administration experienced three different Treasury Secretaries during his tenure as President of the United States. Another question that we should be wondering is why did the nation have to endure three different Treasury Secretaries in such a short period? Were they corrupt like the government in Atlas Shrugged, going after their own agenda to better themselves? Even the current president, President Barack Obama, experienced a few pit stops with his choice of Secretary of Treasury, Timothy Geithner. Why is it, that both of these Presidents are experiencing problems with such critical players in their administration? Below is a list of important positions and people in both President George W. Bush’s and President Barack Obama’s administrations. George W. Bush and his Administration: George W. Bush - The 43rd President of the United States of America Dick Cheney – Vice President of the United States (2001 – 2009) Colin Powell – Secretary of State (2001 – 2005) Condoleezza Rice – Secretary of State (2005 – 2009) Paul O’Neill – Secretary of Treasury (2001 – 2002)

John Snow – Secretary of Treasury (2003 – 2006) Henry Paulson – Secretary of Treasury (2006 – 2009) (Bush, n.d., p.¶) Barack H. Obama and his Administration: Barack H. Obama – The 44th President of the United States Joseph R. Biden – Vice President Hillary Rodham Clinton – Secretary of State Timothy F. Geithner – Secretary of Treasury (The White House, n.d., p.¶) With the current economic woes, you have to wonder, where did the great minds go that are suppose to get the country out of these troubled times. Did all the great minds join John Gault in the strike and retreat to the valley? With many businesses and corporations such as American International Group (AIG), Sally Mae and Freddie Mac, ENRON, Chrysler, Ford Motor Company, General Motors, CitiGroup, Bank of America, JP. Morgan Chase Bank, Wells Fargo Bank, Morgan Stanley and Robert A. Stafford Financial group failing or asking for bailouts as high as $45 billion to as low as $10 billion (United States Government) of taxpayers hardworking money, America and the media is left with asking the question, “Who is John Gault” (1957). Are these business and financial groups the Looters that are taking away from the hard working Americans to better themselves? Many of these groups that have asked for bailouts from the United States Government have Chief Executive Operators (CEO’s) that are still receiving bonuses and six figure salaries, these CEO’s are the Oren Boyles’s and Looters of modern times, that are taking away from the hard workers and making the lazy rich, richer.

Objectivism “Objectivism” is a philosophy that was developed by author Ayn Rand (1961). “Objectivism” holds: that reality exists independent of consciousness; that individual persons are in contact with this reality through sensory perception; that human beings can gain objective knowledge from perception through the process of concept formation; that the proper moral purpose of one's life is the pursuit of one's own happiness or rational self-interest; that the only social system consistent with this morality is full respect for individual rights, embodied in pure laissez-faire capitalism; and that the role of art in human life is to transform man's widest metaphysical ideas, by selective reproduction of reality, into a physical form—a work of art— that he can comprehend and to which he can respond (“Objectivism”, n.d.). Man must be concern first and foremost with himself in order to be productive in society and therefore be of use to society. Society can not better itself when everyone is concerned about everyone else. You must first take care of yourself in order to be successful in society. Ayn Rand (1961) was able to put her philosophy of “objectivism” into four terms: 1. Metaphysics: Objective Reality 2. Epistemology: Reason 3. Ethics: Self-Interest 4. Politics: Capitalism She then translated her four terms into lameness terms for everyone to understand her new philosophy: 1. “Nature, to be commanded, must obey.” 2. “You can’t eat your cake and have it, too.” 3. “Man is an end in himself.”

4. “Give me liberty or give me death” (Rand, n.d., p.¶) It is Ayn Rand’s belief that in a metaphysical society, everyone has the epistemological ability to decide and determine for himself, what should be done to the betterment of oneself. You must first and foremost take care of yourself in order to be of use to anyone else. This idea is not by any means calling for everyone to be self centered and conceded, but to take care of yourself so that you can help in the betterment of society. This is not in anyone calling on everyone to be all about me, but for you to first take care of “me” so that you can help, assist and make life better for “you”. The strikers in Atlas Shrugged understood this philosophy and were in business for not only bettering themselves, but making and development things that would make society better and life easier for those living in society. Selfishness Following the philosophy of “objectivism” may lead for people to assume that a person is being selfish and consider them a selfish person, but it is quite the contrary. The strikers in Atlas Shrugged understood that through their selfishness, they would make a difference in society, making in better for all to live in. In order to survive in society you must be selfish, if you don’t take care of you, who will? So let’s take a look at the meaning of the word selfish/selfishness. The word “selfishness” in today’s society has a connotation of being unethical and morally wrong. The exact dictionary definition of the word “selfishness” is: “concern with one’s own interests” (Rand, 1961, p. vii). How can one survive in a world without being selfish and concerned with oneself? In order to survive, one must think logically and place their needs above anyone else’s in order to be useful to anyone, let alone, himself. Going through life putting others needs before your own, can ultimately cause harm to both parties involved. You

must be selfish in this world in order to survive and an attack on selfishness “is an attack on man’s self-esteem; to surrender one, is to surrender the other” (Rand, 1961, p. xi). Once you take care of “self” you are more apt to take care of those around you and society benefits as a whole. The Looters were selfish, but didn’t understand the true meaning of the word according to Rand’s philosophy and way of living. The Looters were about self and only sought out to improve their way of life and livelihood, not thinking about making things better for others. They were selfish, not because they were concentrating on themselves because they were a commodity to society, but because they were self absorbed. Concluding Remarks In conclusion, both Atlas Shrugged and the United States of America have had to deal with their share of problems and corruption within the Government. The question was asked throughout the novel, “Who’s John Gault?” (Rand 1957) and is now being asked over our national television stations with these trying times in the economy. Have all the great minds in the world gone on strike and are living in some remote area together? If so, we are begging them to come back and grace us with their knowledge to help us improve our economy before we are faced with another depression.

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