Keating’s cynical decision to sell his wife to Wynand
marks the end of his brief happiness, and with this display of weakness
and amorality his fortunes begin to change. In only a few chapters,
Keating gives up a woman he loves, finds that Toohey no longer has
time for him, and enters a period of mediocrity unusual even for
him. Early in the novel, Keating’s and Roark’s careers were juxtaposed, but
now Keating is never mentioned in the same breath with Roark’s name.
Toohey, who built Keating’s career by praising him in the newspaper,
now distances himself from his protégé by embracing a philosophy
of architecture that contradicts everything Keating has ever designed.
Consistent with his philosophy, Toohey thinks of Keating not as
a human being, but as a pawn that must move wherever Toohey’s whim
commands. Keating can no longer rely on Katie, for she has capitulated
to her uncle and become a broken woman. Keating has always drawn
his strength from the praise and loyalty of others, and once they
leave him he finds himself with no inner resources.
Wynand, on the other hand, regains the convictions of
his youth and becomes stronger as Dominique’s influence begins to
chip away at his disillusionment. Although Dominique never gets
Wynand to express regret for his misdeeds, she does make him reconsider
his actions, and leaves him primed to come over to Roark’s side.
She helps pull Wynand’s true heart and spirit from beneath the ruthlessness
and forcefulness that mark his way of doing business.
