Crashed

The part of this book that has been most interesting to me is the parallels that it has with current events in society. Most recently, I realized the comparison that can be made between the on going situation in Colorado and our nation as a whole. In the novel, Colorado is seen as a booming place at first. It is relatively new and unindustrialized. However, right after industrialization comes the economy crashes and the top contributors to the economy (such as oil and natural resource companies) are severely impacted. In my opinion, there is a huge parallel between this and both the Great Depression and the current economic recession that we are in. In both of these instances, America (similar to Colorado) was the go to place that everyone wanted a part of. However, the economy collapsed causing us to think next time if something like that is too good to be true.

Atlas Shrugged

A simple up and down movement of the shoulder.  A shrug: an effortless motion. The meaning behind the title Atlas Shrugged can be interpreted in many different ways. In part one, Dagny continuously tries to put people on the map (Atlas) but most of the small businesses do not seem to care at all. At the same time, Rearden is trying to expand his metal and influence the country but they seem to shrug in indifference and not think much about it. In other words, Rearden and Dagny receive the same response of indifference and shrug to the resentment others give them.  In part two, when Rearden and Francisco met, Francisco asks him what he would tell Atlas, the Greek titan, to do while he tries to hold the world on top of his shoulders. The answer for Francisco, was "to shrug"(pg. 422). If Atlas shrugged, then he would be able to hold the whole world in his arms. 

A New Companion... A New Life

As Hank Rearden and Dagny finally get together after years of working on the same project and showing signs of interest in one another, they did not only get a new companion to live without, but also started a new period of their lives,  a happier one. In the business life it is hard sometimes, especially if one is like Dagny or Hank to find happiness. Work becomes your entire life and there is no space for love or family, it takes over your mid and all that there is time for is business. Through the Rearden Metal John Galt Line however, Dagny and Rearden found their salvation.

They always demonstrated similar thoughts, in the way they acted, talked, and ran their businesses. Two master minds taking their individual businesses towards success by working together on the same project. Finally when they get together, their lives shift from being just business, to being business with a reward for the hard work at night. While they meet every night to spend the night together and relieve their stress, they renovate, and are able to start a bran new day the next morning. Their attitudes shift, they seem happier, and even go on a vacation together, something I thought Dagny and Rearden could never do because of their business-oriented life. With a new life together, I believe they will be able to accomplish much more in the business world than they already have.

Is money a driving force in our lives?

     On the first post I ever made for Atlas Shrugged I questioned to what extent, if any, we should allow money to control our lives. I was curious if money was to begin with, a driving force for much of the work that "successful people" accomplish. Though many might say that money is not the basis for their actions, I think that it subconsciously is. 

     Whether we like it or not, money is essentially the most important thing that we have in the world. This is partly because money gives us the ability to purchase food, a must for survival. Nevertheless, I believe that money is one of the greatest sources for the problems we have.  Jim's wife embodies one the the biggest problems money causes: the wedge between people of different status. She, unlike him, was not born into riches and does not work at a big name company. She often reveals feelings of insecurity that are in regards to Jim's wealth. 

     I believe through Jim's wife, though a simple example, we can see that it is impossible to avoid the negative effects that money has; it often causes people to feel disheartened. It quite literally drives people apart, yet no one seems to want to speak out against it. Regardless, without it there is not much of a way for the world to function. In my belief it is one of the most necessary evils that we have. Even if someone tried to get rid of money and use something else like fruit for example, there would always be people with more fruit than others. In my view this is one of the most unsolvable problems we have. 

-Talia Akerman

Atlas Shrugged vs The Stranger

      When Hank Rearden commences his walk out from his mills late at night, he encounters an unknown, tall, blond figure. The first thing this stranger does is tell him about how he's followed Rearden around for 12 years, and how he is returning him the money that the looters have taken from him. The nameless man hands Rearden a solid block of metal, which is when Rearden finally beings to question who this man is and what is his purpose. Once the stranger introduces himself as Ragnar Danneskjold, Rearden drops the gold out of his hands that was just handed to him and demands explanations.
      After Danneskjold finishes giving Rearden his whole explanation about how he only means to help give back to Rearden what all those looters are taking from him, almost like a reverse Robin Hood, Rearden is still hesitant and tells Danneskjold that he does not want his help. This part of the novel reminded me of Meursault, from the stranger. Just like Meursault who kept receiving help he did not want from all those around him, Rearden told the man that he did not need help from him and wished to never see him again.
       After reading the whole scene between Rearden and Danneskjold, I realized that Hank acted completely different than Meursault. Hank opposed to Danneskjolds views because he merely saw him as a criminal, and that was something that he stated he was strongly against. He told Danneskjold how he would not only deny his money and help, but if he was near a phone he would even call the cops to turn him in. Coincidentally, a cop did appear and claimed to have spotted Danneskjold, so he questioned Rearden about it to see if Rearden had seen him anywhere. To my surprise, despite everything Rearden said about Danneskjold, Rearden did not turn him in. Rearden also defended him and claimed that Danneskjold was his new "body guard" when the cop asked who the man next to him was.

Francisco

Francisco's role has been extremely variable as the novel has unfolded. He starts off as this guy that Dagny and many others looked up too. He was a man who was destined for glory. I personally really liked him.

As the novel progressed, he turned into a characteristically negative 'playboy'. His actions of purposely screwing over the stock holders of his company annoyed me as well. His overall attitude made him seem arrogant and spiteful to some degree. He takes on a role that goes against his values, as well as Dagny's and Hank's. Although saying all of this, I began to feel as if he was acting all of this out strategically. I get this feeling mainly from his development as a character when he speaks with Hank.

He reveals to us that he still has feelings for this one particular girl (cough cough Dagny) and that he has never actually slept with any of the skanks that he's hung around with over the past years. Francisco's speech in the end of chapter four, part two, reveals more of his beliefs to us. He basically explains that those who have sex with people that they genuinely care about have good morals and that those who have sex with just anyone display bad morals. Its funny that he has been acting characteristically similar to the latter, and the fact that he explains that people like that have bad morals sticks out to me. Nobody would blatantly say that they have bad morals.

To me, Rand is manipulating the character of Francisco as if she's playing a chess game. I'm not entirely sure on what she's trying to do. All I know is that something is evident in her use of Francisco.

Who is the Destroyer?

As I am reading the novel I begin to wonder who is this destroyer that has been stripping the world of all its successful men who are capable of making the world a better place. Is it a bad thing that all of these men have been disappearing? They are leaving the world lacking responsible men who can balance all the so called looters and corrupt politicians. Conversely, I have also thought that maybe this is a good  thing because in many situations, it is necessary to hit the bottom before  beginning to make things better.

Back to the destroyer, I wonder if he/she is tied to John Galt of if he/she is John Galt. I highly doubt this because I have a feeling the John Galt is something of much more importance that will surface late in the novel in the form of a plot twister. Lately I have sensed some foreshadowing that the philosopher Dr. Akston is or is tied to the destroyer. Mainly because of the cigarette butt left in Ken Danagger’s office which is similar to the one that he gave Dangy in Montana earlier in the book. This clue leads me to believe that even if Dr. Akston isn’t the destroyer he must be in some way connected to him. Lastly, I would like to predict that Dagny is going to find the destroyer before he finds her. Moreover I want to predict that she is going to find him as a result of the cigarette butt and the old man in the Taggart Terminal. 

Reverse Robin Hood

        When Ragnar Danneskjold steps out of the blue into Rearden's life, he offers him a bar of gold. Unlike the paper money that floats around through the hands of looters and collectors, this gold symbolizes concrete, unsharable, fixed wealth. Danneskjold explains that his every robbery and seizure of property has been an effort to restore to the rich what has been taken from them by the poor. 

        Rearden is appalled by such a notion, and refuses to accept the gold. He scolds Danneskjold and claims that this plan goes against his own principles as he will never accept money taken by force. Just as he signed the gift certificate on the basis of his moral premise, Rearden refuses the gold as a violation of his beliefs. Danneskjold responds by using a phrase often said by Francisco; he does not expect him to understand at this time. It is a phrase that almost treats Rearden like a child; it implies that he does not have the clarity to see the truth as of yet.

        What Danneskjold has been working for all this time, he explains, is to permanently erase the notion of Robin Hood as a hero. His goal is to return money to those who have earned it, who deserve it, and have been robbed of it. He hopes to erase the notion that "need" is an excuse for committing monstrosities, and that those in need do not have to work for their money. Danneskjold is saving for a future where the innovative will rebuild from the ashes of a world which the looters have destroyed. 

Character's Subconscious Denials

This part of the book has shown me some denials of the blatant and known truth by characters and some irony demonstrated by others. I see it obvious that Jim doesn’t really love Cherryl, not like she loves and respects him, and like some other characters like Betty have said, I believe that Jim is marrying this girl because it makes him look like the hero he loves to be seen as. People look at Jim and say “He’s so nice, he brought that girl up from nothing and is giving her everything” Jim is also doing this, in my opinion, because he’s following his shown humanistic side and “giving a chance to the smaller people” who people like him usually look down at. So this is either a pity marriage or a selfish act by Jim to make his public face look more appealing. I also see some of Lillian’s denial of accepting what’s going on between Dagny and Hank, even though she’s shown some signs that she’s not clueless. When she was telling Dagny to give her her bracelet back and told her that she’s running the risk of being misunderstood, she meant being misunderstood by Lillian herself, and with Dagny refusing to give it up and then Hank making Lil apologize for the occurrence, Lillian has enough proof to know what’s going on, but she doesn’t want to accept it out loud because she wants to stay with Hank and obviously cares a lot more about him than he cares about her.

Dagny's Decision to Leave Atlantis

Camille Kelleher

From the accumulation of all of the pages I have read, the moment when Dagny lets me down is when she decides to leave Atlantis. She has finally found a place where she can reach her full potential without having to carry anyone else’s burdens. This idea of selfishness is what governs Atlantis, individuals are allowed to reason and justify their own actions without weighing anyone else’s desires. I initially found this idea hard to accept, and still do, especially when Dagny leaves Rearden in the “other world” without contact for a month and falls in love with John Galt. In my annotations, I have used many words to describe how this was such a disrespectful move on Dagny’s part.

Both John Galt and Francisco know that Dagny will not survive in the “other world” for much longer given how quickly that world is destroying itself. This is especially clear when Project X is demonstrated to government officials and elite intellectuals. John Galt’s feelings toward Dagny’s decision are beautifully summed up on page 745. He describes the last experience that Dagny has to suffer before she returns to Atlantis. She has to realize that the ability to be intransigent to others is what leads her to success. Her assumption that she has to control society and make it reach her ideas and values she has set for it stems out of her stubborn attitude and her steadfast leadership qualities. In the following pages, I think Rand will make us endure the destruction of Dagny’s goals and watch her grow (not wither) into Atlantis’ ideals and lifestyles. 

Hank's Epiphany

Hank demonstrates his strongest, most devoted act of love towards Dagny when he signs his patents over to Ferris. Just as it has been since the beginning of the book, Dagny and Hank’s love story is what stands out the most to me when reading “Atlas Shrugged.” Call it cheesy or mindless, but this is pretty much the only aspect of the book that I enjoy reading about; the rest is just business and chaos that becomes redundant throughout the novel.

When Hank finds out that his mistake of keeping his affair with Dagny a secret might ruin her reputation and career, he does not hesitate to give up his beloved business that he has been working hard to grow for many years. Hank first refuses to hand his patents over, as he does not agree with the Directive, but the minute Dagny’s name is brought into the conversation, and her career is threatened, Hank changes his mind and does whatever he has to do to keep her safe. It is clear, in this scene, that Hank is in love with Dagny, and that he has been all along. Both the audience and Hank learn that Hank truly cares about Dagny, that he is willing to risk himself for her, and that he takes responsibility for the errors he committed in hiding their relationship from the world.


The looters struck again, giving Hank yet another piece of evidence that shows that they prey on the good morals of industrialists and take advantage of them. He refuses to take part in their actions, and because of this, as well, he hands his company to Ferris. He realizes that his dishonesty regarding Dagny caused him to be in the position he is in, and takes full responsibility for it. 

The downward spiral prompted by the new government-issued directives has shown the true identities of several characters in this novel. It seems, for the majority, that everyone is to blame, yet nobody is to blame. Each person seems to have someone to blame other than themselves. The only people in this novel that seem to posses any sense of clarity regarding the situation are Dagny Taggart, Hank Reardon, and Francisco D’Anconia. The rest of the people, from workers to government officials, are just looking for someone else to blame. For example, when a harsh winter hits the country, government officials state that the weather is to blame for the impending economic crisis, when in reality the majority of the society does not have fuel to warm their house because there is simply no supply available as nearly all of the companies have gone out of business. This situation shows that in difficult times, nobody is really interested in looking beyond the façade of the situation naming the fortunate as culprit when in reality, they are not truly the ones at fault. It is sad to see a society so distorted by what the government and media has told them that nobody is willing to find the source behind the disasters happening daily. The three protagonists of this story seem to be the only people with clear heads on their shoulder as they can see behind each situation to what exactly caused it almost always leading back to the government directives restricting free enterprise. 

The Myth of Atlas

The title Atlas Shrugged was perplexing; it seemed to have no correlation with the rest of the novel. I took guesses about the nature of the title but Ayn Rand finally revealed its true meaning through a conversation amongst Francisco D’Anconia and Hank Rearden. Francisco is trying to explain to Rearden how the world that they live in takes good men and use their virtues to harm them. It takes their love and twists it to manipulate them into doing their bidding. Francisco say  “If you saw Atlas, the giant who holds the world on his shoulders, if you saw that he stood, blood running down his chest, his knees buckling, his arms trembling but still trying to hold the world aloft with the last of his strength, and the greater his effort the heavier the world bore down upon his shoulders - What would you tell him?"   Rearden had no answer to Francisco’s question so Francisco says “shrug.” I look up the story of Atlas. Atlas was a god who led the titans against Zeus. His punishment was to hold the world or “heaven” on his shoulder for the rest of his life.  The only thing that kept him holding the earth was his love for it, if he had no virtues, he would have shrugged and let the world die. Francisco is implying that the industrialists are the Atlas of the world, they hold the world aloft and the public uses this love for their business to destroy them. Finally the industrialists are taking a stand and shrugging, letting the world fall into chaos without them. Then when the world sees that they need them, there was be a second “renaissance” and the world will be reborn into an era of innovation and industry.  

Directive 10-289, Miracle Metal, Danneskjold's appearance

When Boyle, Mouch, Jim and the rest were gathered discussing Directive 10-289, I became somewhat bothered by their arguments.  All the points were basically inhumane and unconstitutional. Each point is in one way or another established to take away a person’s rights.  Furthermore, I was angered more by the fact it seemed like all the arguments in favor of the directive and its points were not well planned; they just seemed like a good idea at the time, so they decided to run with it, not thinking about the consequences. I think Rand did this on purpose to show how Communism, in her eyes, doesn’t have logical reasoning and much creative thought behind it.  I feel like the more I read, the more I want Hank and Dagny to prosper and the so called “government” to fail.

Also, Hank’s decision to sign over his company was pretty shocking. Rand has always portrayed Hank as a winner; even when his back is against the wall, he just doesn’t lose. Nevertheless, Hank is human and he can’t handle seeing Dagny suffer. If he alone, was on the losing end, he would still be the owner of Rearden Metal, but he couldn’t let anything happen to the woman he loved. Once he realized that Dagny’s career and reputation would be ruined, he had no option but to turn over his company to Miracle Metal. For some reason, I thought Hank would speak to Dagny and figure something out, but I think Rand is leaving that for the end.

Hank’s reaction toward Danneskjold was surprising as well. I understand that what Danneskjold is doing is against his beliefs and he doesn’t want to be involved with criminals, but Danneskjold is working in his favor. He is fighting Communism and the government in his own methods. I just thought Hank would have been more supportive even if at the end he did end up taking the gold. The significance of this will probably be revealed later on, but I think Hank is going to start accepting money from Danneskjold and end up working with him to overturn the government.

Jose Novas

Corruption

                What is more corrupt; the power of business's who make profits for themselves, or the government? People look up to the government as if a superior god and when the government puts it's foot down, people will submit. However, what happens when one man defies the will of the government and exposes it for what is really is? 

                Hank stands on trial and is at risk of going to jail and loosing his property, but he refuses to defend himself or fall to the mercy of the court, leaving the judges in confusion. What the government and the public don't realize is "you will discover that you need the voluntary co-operation of your victims, in many more ways that you can see at present." (page 443) Hank makes a point to show that rather than being a man who is innocent until proven guilty, he is a victim to the law and he shows the public that we neither have rights nor the freedom at the will of the government.  Hank wants "to let the nature of this procedure appear exactly for what it is. If you need my help to disguise it - I will not help you." (page 443)

                Although he is corrupt in his own minor ways such as "Do I wish to pay my workers more than their services are worth to me? I do not. Do I wish to sell my product for less than my customers are willing to pay me? I do not. Do I wish to sell it at a loss of give it away? I do not." (page 444) the vision of the government as a sanction of justice is cleared and can now be seen as for its manipulation. What I found most interesting that actually made me smile was the courtrooms response. Rather than booing Hank for his confessions to his selfishness, "the crowd burst into applause." (page 445) All of the "victims" of the law who were too afraid to stand up for what they believed, found hope in Hanks speech. This just goes to show the ability the law had to keep the populations mouth shut until one man spoke up.