Study Questions & Essay Topics
Study Questions
1. What does Ayn
Rand mean by “the sanction of the victim”? What does it mean when
Rearden refuses to give it at his trial?
2. Ayn Rand intended
for
atlas shrugged to demonstrate her philosophy
of Objectivism in action. How successful was she in showing how
Objectivism can work in the real world?
3. How do events
in
atlas shrugged support Ayn Rand’s view that
capitalism is the only moral economic system?
Suggested Essay Topics
1. What role does Eddie Willers
play in the unfolding drama? What does his character say about the
role of the common man in the world of Ayn Rand?
2. What are the causes of the
Taggart Tunnel disaster?
3. Why is Rearden willing to
support his family despite their attitude toward him? What causes
his position to change?
4. Is the current economic and
political system in this country more like Galt’s ideal or the looters’?
5. According to Ayn Rand, selfishness
is a moral and practical good. What does Rand mean by selfishness?
6. What does Francisco mean when
he says, “The words ‘to make money’ hold the essence of human morality”?
