While the fiction of novelist-philosopher Ayn Rand is extremely popular and enduring, little has been written on it so far. This book consists of essays, most of which are new, by top Rand scholars on Atlas Shrugged, her magnum opus. The essays deal with historical, literary, and philosophical topics, surpassing related writings in breadth and depth of analysis. The historical essays cover the writing of Atlas Shrugged, its publication history, and its reception. The literary essays cover analysis of the novel's plot, theme, and characterization; comparisons with other works, such as the novels of Hugo, Dostoyevsky, and Joyce; and the proper approach to adapting Atlas Shrugged to film. The philosophical essays cover a vast range of topics, including the place of Galt's speech in the novel, the role of the mind in human life, and the evil of non-objective law. Some of the essays make use of previously unpublished material from the Ayn Rand Archives.
Essays on Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged
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Editorial Reviews
Review
Ayn Rand's magnum opus has long warranted analyses that are scholarly but accessible, sympathetic but not fawning, useful to readers new to Rand and rewarding to those who have long studied her. Readers have also needed an account of the book's development, publication, and reception. This outstanding collection meets these needs and more. It is the novel's definitive companion.... (John P. McCaskey, Stanford University )
Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged is unprecedented: a literary masterwork that presents a startlingly new philosophical system in the form of a mystery novel. In his latest collection of essays, Robert Mayhew has assembled an impressive group of scholars who explore Rand's last and most ambitious novel as a work of literature and of philosophy and place it in its historical and cultural context. This is at once a guide for new readers and a source of fresh insights for devotees. (James G. Lennox, University of Pittsburgh )
In Atlas Shrugged, Ayn Rand presented a revolutionary new philosophy in the form of a gripping and inspiring novel. Dr. Mayhew's remarkable new collection will help readers gain an even deeper appreciation of Rand's esthetic and philosophical achievement. For anyone interested in understanding one of the most celebrated books of the 20th century, Essays on Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged is a must-read. (Yaron Brook, President and Executive Director, The Ayn Rand Institute )
Ayn Rand's magnum opus has long warranted analyses that are scholarly but accessible, sympathetic but not fawning, useful to readers new to Rand and rewarding to those who have long studied her. Readers have also needed an account of the book's development, publication, and reception. This outstanding collection meets these needs and more. It is the novel'sdefinitive companion. (John P. McCaskey, Stanford University )
Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged is unprecedented: a literary masterwork that presents a startlingly new philosophical system in the form of a mystery novel. In his latest collection of essays, Robert Mayhew has assembled an impressive group of scholars who explore Rand's last and most ambitious novel as a work of literature and of philosophy and place it in its historical and cultural context. This is at once a guide for new readers and a source of fresh insights for devotees. (James G. Lennox, University of Pittsburgh )
In Atlas Shrugged, Ayn Rand presented a revolutionary new philosophy in the form of a gripping and inspiring novel. Dr. Mayhew's remarkable new collection will help readers gain an even deeper appreciation of Rand's esthetic and philosophical achievement. For anyone interested in understanding one of the most celebrated books of the 20th century, Essays on Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged is a must-read. (Yaron Brook, President and Executive Director, The Ayn Rand Institute )
Ayn Rand's magnum opus has long warranted analyses that are scholarly but accessible, sympathetic but not fawning, useful to readers new to Rand and rewarding to those who have long studied her. Readers have also needed an account of the book's development, publication, and reception. This outstanding collection meets these needs and more. It is the novel'sdefinitive companion. (John P. McCaskey, Stanford University )
About the Author
Robert Mayhew is professor of philosophy at Seton Hall University. His authored books include Ayn Rand and Song of Russia: Communism and Anti-Communism in 1940s Hollywood, The Female in Aristotle's Biology: Reason or Rationalization, and Aristotle's Critique of Plato's Republic; his edited collections include Essays on Ayn Rand's The Fountainhead and Ayn Rand Answers: The Best of her Q&A.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful
By R. Miner
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
I've loved hosting an informal study group on this text! We agree on one or two chapters and then meet once a month to discuss intriguing points from the essays. Each person brings at least one point that they want to discuss. The book offers so many insights into a novel which is always surprising me with more delightful points to learn. I highly recommend it for growth as a personal pleasure or one to share with other fans.
15 of 20 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This collection of 22 essays covers aspects of "Atlas Shrugged" from the most general to the most applied. For people who want to understand the underlying causes explaining why "Atlas Shrugged" exerts a tremendous impact on the thinking of people who change American culture, this book explains it. The collection begins with a refresher course on the events of "Atlas Shrugged" (I advise readers of these essays to have already read "Atlas Shrugged," even if years ago), then proceeds to previously-unreported facts about character developments that Ayn Rand made during the writing, and in the collection's later chapters the essayists elucidate through comprehensive non-fiction prose many of the ideas on law and business ethics that the novel presents through its characters' actions and in brief dialogue scattered through the novel.
Previously-published explorations on "Atlas Shrugged" didn't indicate how Ayn Rand's conception of her major character Francisco d'Anconia went through a significant transition. You get to read in this collection many quotations from Ayn Rand's manuscripts that show how d'Anconia changed from manuscript draft to manuscript draft to the final book. The early version of d'Anconia is intriguing, but it's easy to see why Ayn Rand realized that the story and the character needed the ruthless yet furtive honesty he has in the final incarnation. Not every aspect of the changes that "Atlas Shrugged" went through is here; for a comprehensive examination, "Essays on Ayn Rand's 'Atlas Shrugged'" should be read along with "Journal of Ayn Rand," published in 1997. Although some might want "Essays on 'Atlas Shrugged'" to cover it all, as it is it already fills 465 with its essays before going on to 41 pages of appendices (not counting the index), so the editor can be excused for not trying to give an overview of what people will find in "Journals of Ayn Rand" on pages 389 to 664. "Journals of Ayn Rand" is great for seeing how the overall structure of "Atlas Shrugged" was tweaked several times during the writing, and "Journals" shows what Ayn Rand wrote to herself to clarify her thinking -- but it doesn't reproduce manuscript originally intended for the novel and then superceded. "Essays on 'Atlas Shrugged'" fills in that gap, along with analyses of the significance of those changes, changes that were not hinted at by the notes that Miss Rand wrote for herself.
There's more:
* Had you noticed (or merely suspected without having the words to name it) that the emphasis in "The Fountainhead" (Ayn Rand's novel immediately prior to "Atlas Shrugged") was on the importance of *independence* to self-fulfillment (and human achievement) whereas in "Atlas Shrugged" there's a stress on *rationality*? Essayist Darryl Wright noticed, and he writes in detail that let's us follow how Ayn Rand elaborated on her understanding of the issues involved until she reached her last conclusions on which of those two virtues is paramount;
* Have you wanted to carry away in your mind single-word descriptions that nail down just what mistaken thinking styles are held by the characters in the book, so that you can better identify these wrong habits when you see others using them? In the essays, you'll find Mr. Thompson identified as a pragmatist, Dr. Stadler as a Platonist ("a Scientist King"), etc. In each case, the reasons for the label are given.
* Do you want to know why a film or TV version of "Atlas Shrugged" has yet to happen? One chapter details the efforts (and contracts) that didn't end with any filming during Ayn Rand's lifetime (she lived another 25 years after publication).
* Have you wanted to better understand the speech that Galt makes to explain the ruination of the economy and culture? Inasmuch as the text of "Atlas Shrugged" does not divide that speech into sections, you may have been fazed or overwhelmed by such an undertaking. Three of the essayists undertook thorough examinations and present their findings here. (One of the three -- Allan Gotthelf -- knew Ayn Rand, showed his outline to her, and listened as she told him that his understanding is correct.) For people who take "Atlas Shrugged" seriously, this can be a fantastic time-saver, because great analyses are presented in prose and in an outline published as an appendix. (What's more, I had to acknowledge that the outline here is better than the one I created on my own before this book was available.)
If you are at all serious about studying "Atlas Shrugged" "under the hood," this should be your first source. Some of the contributors knew Ayn Rand; the others studied her philosopher under those who knew Ayn Rand, and through the auspices of the Institute co-founded by her heir and thirty-year "pupil." You won't go wrong learning about Ayn Rand and "Atlas Shrugged" from this book.
Previously-published explorations on "Atlas Shrugged" didn't indicate how Ayn Rand's conception of her major character Francisco d'Anconia went through a significant transition. You get to read in this collection many quotations from Ayn Rand's manuscripts that show how d'Anconia changed from manuscript draft to manuscript draft to the final book. The early version of d'Anconia is intriguing, but it's easy to see why Ayn Rand realized that the story and the character needed the ruthless yet furtive honesty he has in the final incarnation. Not every aspect of the changes that "Atlas Shrugged" went through is here; for a comprehensive examination, "Essays on Ayn Rand's 'Atlas Shrugged'" should be read along with "Journal of Ayn Rand," published in 1997. Although some might want "Essays on 'Atlas Shrugged'" to cover it all, as it is it already fills 465 with its essays before going on to 41 pages of appendices (not counting the index), so the editor can be excused for not trying to give an overview of what people will find in "Journals of Ayn Rand" on pages 389 to 664. "Journals of Ayn Rand" is great for seeing how the overall structure of "Atlas Shrugged" was tweaked several times during the writing, and "Journals" shows what Ayn Rand wrote to herself to clarify her thinking -- but it doesn't reproduce manuscript originally intended for the novel and then superceded. "Essays on 'Atlas Shrugged'" fills in that gap, along with analyses of the significance of those changes, changes that were not hinted at by the notes that Miss Rand wrote for herself.
There's more:
* Had you noticed (or merely suspected without having the words to name it) that the emphasis in "The Fountainhead" (Ayn Rand's novel immediately prior to "Atlas Shrugged") was on the importance of *independence* to self-fulfillment (and human achievement) whereas in "Atlas Shrugged" there's a stress on *rationality*? Essayist Darryl Wright noticed, and he writes in detail that let's us follow how Ayn Rand elaborated on her understanding of the issues involved until she reached her last conclusions on which of those two virtues is paramount;
* Have you wanted to carry away in your mind single-word descriptions that nail down just what mistaken thinking styles are held by the characters in the book, so that you can better identify these wrong habits when you see others using them? In the essays, you'll find Mr. Thompson identified as a pragmatist, Dr. Stadler as a Platonist ("a Scientist King"), etc. In each case, the reasons for the label are given.
* Do you want to know why a film or TV version of "Atlas Shrugged" has yet to happen? One chapter details the efforts (and contracts) that didn't end with any filming during Ayn Rand's lifetime (she lived another 25 years after publication).
* Have you wanted to better understand the speech that Galt makes to explain the ruination of the economy and culture? Inasmuch as the text of "Atlas Shrugged" does not divide that speech into sections, you may have been fazed or overwhelmed by such an undertaking. Three of the essayists undertook thorough examinations and present their findings here. (One of the three -- Allan Gotthelf -- knew Ayn Rand, showed his outline to her, and listened as she told him that his understanding is correct.) For people who take "Atlas Shrugged" seriously, this can be a fantastic time-saver, because great analyses are presented in prose and in an outline published as an appendix. (What's more, I had to acknowledge that the outline here is better than the one I created on my own before this book was available.)
If you are at all serious about studying "Atlas Shrugged" "under the hood," this should be your first source. Some of the contributors knew Ayn Rand; the others studied her philosopher under those who knew Ayn Rand, and through the auspices of the Institute co-founded by her heir and thirty-year "pupil." You won't go wrong learning about Ayn Rand and "Atlas Shrugged" from this book.
18 of 25 people found the following review helpful
By Paul Beaird
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
If you enjoyed Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand and you want see how the author combined characters, action and themes together in this book which clearly reveals Ayn Rand as a moralist and lover of life on Earth, you are in for a treat between the covers of Essays on Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged.
Robert Mayhew has published in one place the insights of some of the best writers on Rand's Atlas and offered them to you for at least a month's worth of enjoyable reading.
The essay by Onkar Ghate, "The Part and Chapter Headings of Atlas Shrugged" is worth the price of the entire book on its own. He shows you the connections of the characters and the novel's action, as they develop through the plot of the novel, in such rich detail that you wonder how anyone could add any more insight on the novel. But, every writer collected here does that.
You get two explorations of the hidden conspirator, Galt. You get a romantic reflection on the cheerful energy of the very deliberate Francisco. Greg Salmieri's "Discovering Atlantis" reveals the moral theme of Atlas by showing, step by step, how the events in the novel and the thinking of Dagny Taggart and Hank Rearden lead them from stages of not knowing the value of their lives and work, gradually, to complete understanding and their final choice to join Galt's conspiracy. What you see here is Ayn Rand's mind at work, understanding what the elements of the moral life are and in creating events that give the characters the chance to learn those elements. That is novel-plotting, characterization and moral thinking on a dimension that has no equal in human literature before Atlas. High praise? Well, read Atlas and Salmieri's essay and see for yourself.
The briefest piece is offered by Dr. Harry Binswanger who compares the writing style of Rand's Atlas and James Joyce's Ulysses. He says, "Clearly, one of these novels is a stylistic masterpiece, and the other is trash." The fight over which is which reveals much about the culture and souls of those who care about the matter.
Darryl Wright provides "Ayn Rand's Ethics: From The Fountainhead to Atlas Shrugged". Here we get to see Ayn Rand, the intellectual, putting herself through the merciless examination of her earlier theme "the independent mind", until she works out the basis for a full-fledged moral theory with its actual roots in reason and the nature of life. Few presentations enable you, the reader, to see an author's, a philosopher's, mind doing its inner thinking. Rand was a hero who did not let easy generalizations block her way to the truth.
My favorites in this book are the fighting essays of Dr. Tara Smith "No Tributes to Caesar: Good or Evil in Atlas Shrugged" and "'Humanity's Darkest Evil': The Lethal Destructiveness of Non-Objective Law". Here is the application of Rand's ethics to issues of danger to the civilization in which you and I live today. There is a boldness in her words that tells you she is serious about protecting the values that preserve your life in our world. And, Smith is not alone as one of the New Moralists you'll read in these pages.
Atlas Shrugged has one of the most original plots of any novel you'll find and it is the kind of adventure story that will make you re-think every idea you have ever heard or lived your life by. The writers in Essays on Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged help you see how the author grappled with those very ideas. Hours of happy mental grappling here for you, too.
Robert Mayhew has published in one place the insights of some of the best writers on Rand's Atlas and offered them to you for at least a month's worth of enjoyable reading.
The essay by Onkar Ghate, "The Part and Chapter Headings of Atlas Shrugged" is worth the price of the entire book on its own. He shows you the connections of the characters and the novel's action, as they develop through the plot of the novel, in such rich detail that you wonder how anyone could add any more insight on the novel. But, every writer collected here does that.
You get two explorations of the hidden conspirator, Galt. You get a romantic reflection on the cheerful energy of the very deliberate Francisco. Greg Salmieri's "Discovering Atlantis" reveals the moral theme of Atlas by showing, step by step, how the events in the novel and the thinking of Dagny Taggart and Hank Rearden lead them from stages of not knowing the value of their lives and work, gradually, to complete understanding and their final choice to join Galt's conspiracy. What you see here is Ayn Rand's mind at work, understanding what the elements of the moral life are and in creating events that give the characters the chance to learn those elements. That is novel-plotting, characterization and moral thinking on a dimension that has no equal in human literature before Atlas. High praise? Well, read Atlas and Salmieri's essay and see for yourself.
The briefest piece is offered by Dr. Harry Binswanger who compares the writing style of Rand's Atlas and James Joyce's Ulysses. He says, "Clearly, one of these novels is a stylistic masterpiece, and the other is trash." The fight over which is which reveals much about the culture and souls of those who care about the matter.
Darryl Wright provides "Ayn Rand's Ethics: From The Fountainhead to Atlas Shrugged". Here we get to see Ayn Rand, the intellectual, putting herself through the merciless examination of her earlier theme "the independent mind", until she works out the basis for a full-fledged moral theory with its actual roots in reason and the nature of life. Few presentations enable you, the reader, to see an author's, a philosopher's, mind doing its inner thinking. Rand was a hero who did not let easy generalizations block her way to the truth.
My favorites in this book are the fighting essays of Dr. Tara Smith "No Tributes to Caesar: Good or Evil in Atlas Shrugged" and "'Humanity's Darkest Evil': The Lethal Destructiveness of Non-Objective Law". Here is the application of Rand's ethics to issues of danger to the civilization in which you and I live today. There is a boldness in her words that tells you she is serious about protecting the values that preserve your life in our world. And, Smith is not alone as one of the New Moralists you'll read in these pages.
Atlas Shrugged has one of the most original plots of any novel you'll find and it is the kind of adventure story that will make you re-think every idea you have ever heard or lived your life by. The writers in Essays on Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged help you see how the author grappled with those very ideas. Hours of happy mental grappling here for you, too.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Orthodox Take On Atlas Shrugged
This is fourth, and apparently final, collection of essays on Ayn Rand's major works of fiction edited by Robert Mayhew. Read more
Published on April 9, 2011 by Steve Jackson
5.0 out of 5 stars
Mayhew's Essays on Atlas Shrugged the best and most informative...
Mr. Boeckmann noted that "Dr. Rasmussen specifically cites Edward Younkins' collection of essays, which falls in this category, let me simply mention that the publishers had to... Read more
Published on March 9, 2010 by Edward Cline
3.0 out of 5 stars
Worthy
An engaging panegyric devoted to Ayn Rand's magnum opus, this volume is a collection of essays by Rand devotees, and thus lacks any of what Bertrand Russell would call evidence... Read more
Published on March 8, 2010 by DL
5.0 out of 5 stars
A unique and groundbreaking volume on Ayn Rand's greatest novel
Robert Mayhew's book Essays on Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged approaches its subject matter with a sophistication and comprehensiveness unmatched by any previous treatment, and it in... Read more
Published on March 8, 2010 by Tore Boeckmann
3.0 out of 5 stars
Truth in Packaging Is Needed
I expect Essays on Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged to be a useful book, like the volumes under Robert Mayhew's editorship that covered Rand's other novels. It is on my wish list. Read more
Published on March 6, 2010 by Robert L. Campbell
3.0 out of 5 stars
Rand's book has been studied for decades by scholars!
Rasmussen & Den Uyl, Chris Sciabarra, Mimi Reisel Gladstein and Ed Younkins have all edited or written scholarly essays and books on Atlas Shrugged, so to claim this is the first... Read more
Published on March 6, 2010 by Tibor R. Machan
3.0 out of 5 stars
Not the first scholarly study
The editorial description states "This is the first scholarly study of Atlas Shrugged . . ."
This is false. Read more
This is false. Read more
Published on March 6, 2010 by Dr. D. B. Rasmussen
5.0 out of 5 stars
Understanding the Sunlit Universe that is 'Atlas Shrugged'
When I was a teenager I was eager to join the real world where I would find competence, achievement and joy from all of the capable people I would find there. Read more
Published on November 11, 2009 by Russell W. Shurts
5.0 out of 5 stars
Top of the Line
Atlas Shrugged is the most complete artistic expression of Ayn Rand's philosophy, Objectivism, which she called "a philosophy for living on earth" and described as "the concept of... Read more
Published on October 12, 2009 by Andrew Layman
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Broad Exploration
I have enjoyed reading this book. The essays cover a broad range of topics surrounding the characters, the events surrounding the release, an exploration of the writing as a whole,... Read more
Published on October 10, 2009 by Caleb Hirsch
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