It’s the summer of the chunkster! A group of us decided to read Atlas Shrugged (#AtlasRAL) this summer and we have hit our last milestone which was to complete the book by August 15th. I am happy to say that I finished it a week before the deadline. Yes!
“You don’t have to see through the eyes of others, hold onto yours, stand on your own judgment, you know that what is, is–say it aloud, like the holiest of prayers, and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.”
— Dagny Taggart
First, a few thoughts:
- Of the three parts, this last part was my least favorite. Much of it seemed a little far-fetched and the romantic undertones were overly dramatic, in my opinion.
- In the previous parts, we have the build-up of what’s about to go down to look forward to, but in this part, we see it happen and was it just me, or was it a bit anticlimactic? Maybe because we all knew what was coming?
- THE BIG SPEECH, which is super long and everyone warned me about, was not all that long or maybe I was more into it than I thought. I had no problems with it and didn’t even skim.
- There is one character in the book, a much liked character who doesn’t fare all that well by the end of the story. This made me sad and was a little surprising.
It’s really hard for me to sum this book up because it’s so many things. While reading, your mind can’t help but ponder the ideas presented. That no one should live or produce for the good of others alone. That art, be it science, music or industry should continue on with a focus on creation, not so much what it can do for another person. Facts are facts, no matter what one hopes or desires. It all makes sense, but it’s still hard to wrap the brain around. You know?
In the end, it was a remarkable book. Much easier to read than I thought it would be. It gave me lots to think about but that romantic thread! I really could have done without it.
For those who took a leap and read it with me… Guess what guys? We are done!
Click here to read what I had to say about Part 1 and Part 2.
Book Chatter 
Yay! *throws confetti* Bravo! Applause, applause! You did it – glad you enjoyed it even more than you were anticipating. It’s wonderful when that happens, isn’t it? 🙂
Yes!! I am beyond excited that I finally read it and that I even liked it.
That’s quite the achievement –congrats. I never could have tackled this one.
Atlas Shrugged is an intimidating read when you consider what has been said about it and the size of it doesn’t help but it was actually a very good story. I really didn’t have any problems reading it.
Did you have the novel spoiled for you, or did your read-along group just figure it out?
Yeah, I know. 🙂 A lot of people think they understand Ayn Rand’s philosophy after having read Atlas Shrugged, but it’s actually quite difficult to really understand. I have resources that I think will help on my blog: I have various essays, links to further reading in books and websites, and an introduction to Rand’s philosophy. I recommend starting with the introduction, even having read Galt’s Speech, because it will add some new points and emphasize others that the Speech doesn’t. Here’s a link to my Introduction to Objectivism, if you’re interested.
Finally finished and feel exhausted. Also pretty crushed by your mention of bullet point four. It felt unnecessarily cruel to occur as it did, but I’m not sure if Rand did it for poignancy or what. Gonna have to mull it all out before I do a post I think. Thanks for the RAL, I really enjoyed this book and am glad I got to finally read it!
Crap. I don’t remember to whom you are referring in your fourth point. Maybe I need to just pick up the book and read the rest of it since the audiobook, while amazing, is progressing at a much slower pace than I would like.
Her philosophy is so…weird. I have read almost all of her books and even read up on her online, but I still cannot wrap my head around what she wanted for the world. AS is so black-and-white to me. While it evokes a ton of emotion, making me downright angry at times, it is as if the true root of her philosophy is just out of reach. I understand while listening, but after I stop, it fades away. I was hoping that listening to it will create more clarity for me.
Yeah, you need to finish it. I was sad at how the character in question was handled at the end.
I know what you mean about how everything seems to fade once you stop reading/listening. At times I feel like I get what she is saying but then there were moments were I felt like she was going the other way with what she was saying. For example, it all hits the fan and then suddenly, it feels as if the intellects are bullying the others. I think maybe anyone in power no matter what they stand for can be portrayed that way.
I think I know to whom you are referring now, but I’m afraid to ask. Which is stupid because I feel like I should know this.
Exactly! She does seem to waffle on her statements, doesn’t she? So the danger is in power? I just don’t quite get it.