Spark Notes Atlas Shrugged (SparkNotes Literature Guides)

This is a big book, full of big ideas. Read at your own risk. You might find yourself challenged by its viewpoint. You might find your own philosophy lacking or hypocritical. You might find yourself changing political parties when you're done reading it. This is a moral defense of capitalism--profit, greed, private property, achievement--all that stuff the media hates Bill Gates for. It takes guts to read this book.That said, it also takes a lot of patience. This is not so much a story as a dramatization of Rand's philosophy. The dialogue is heavy, sometimes stilted or unbelievable, but always has a point to it. The tremendous mental effort that went into assembling this book astounds me. I did not become a "pure" Objectivist after reading it, as I am much too generous and humor-loving for that, but I have deeply learned and respected the lessons taught in this book.I sat down with a pen in hand while reading this so I could underline passages that impressed me. The last third of the book could be described as a string of aphorisms. This is brilliant, brilliant stuff. Alas, it makes for turgid reading, and slows the pace of the story considerably. For my money, The Fountainhead makes a better story, but Atlas Shrugged is the granddaddy when it comes to explaining how Ayn Rand sees the world. For my other thoughts on Rand's philosophy, see my review of The Fountainhead. Again, you have been warned: if you pick up and read Atlas Shrugged, you will be expected to THINK!