Parts 5 & 6
Risk Taking Researcher
Lexi Farnes
I have decided to research about Ayn Rand, because I wanted to know more about her.
Rand was born in Russia in 1905. When she was twelve years old the Bolshevik Revolution occurred and the Communist Era was ushered, this was one of the most horrific times in the country's history. Her family then fell into poverty along with the rest of the country. She completed high school outside of Russia to avoid the Civil War, but she then returned to attend college. She moved to Chicago in 1926 so she would not have to live under the reign of Joseph Stalin, a leader of the Soviet Union.
The novel Anthem serves a political manifesto for her. "Anthem is Rands idea of what would happen to a society if it embraced collectivism and mirrors the reign of Joseph Stalin in the Soviet Union." "Rand continued to attract the attention of philosophers and to lecture on objectivism until her death in 1982" (Book Caps).
She developed a philosophical system called objectivism. Her philosophy is based on four subjects; reality, reason, self-interest, and capitalism. With her philosophy, "Ayn Rand has inspired individuals around the world to discard convention and pursue a better life" (Ayn Rand).
"I am often asked whether I am primarily a novelist or a philosopher. The answer is: both. In a certain sense, every novelist is a philosopher, because one cannot present a picture of human existence without a philosophical framework... In order to define, explain and present my concept of man, I had to become a philosopher in the specific meaning of the term." -Ayn Rand
Book Caps
Hey Lexi,
ReplyDeleteYour post is very good and thorough. I think you did a good job researching her. For my post I was trying to figure out what Anthem was based on, and after reading your post, I found my answer. In addition to your post, at the age of nine, Ayn Rand decided that she wanted to be a fictional writer when she grew up. However, that was greatly opposed in her culture, so she felt like an outsider. I think she wrote Anthem based on her childhood. Why did you want to know more about Ayn Rand? Was there something about her writing that drew you in? Great job!
Thank you for helping me dig deeper into the book!
Mary
Lexi,
ReplyDeleteYour post shows great research skills, as well written making it easy to read.
By reading your blog post, I have learnt more about Ayn Rand's background, especially about her philosophical statement of 'Objectivism'. We can now see from where Anthem is based from; the communism in Russia and how she has a 'belief' statement in Objectivism.
Thanks for the the information,
Sophia Takahashi :)