Objectivism: The Philosophy of Ayn Rand by Leonard Peikoff
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Want to know or understand Ayn Rand’s creation, ‘Objectivism’? This is IT.

To the music video-video game crowd, this will seem cumbersome in ideas and reading. In the past few decades the education has been a backward one of emotion and not reason. This book well explains why folks can take the emotion and altruistic route. but also explain why that is a route to a cliff to fall off. Young people need to read and read books like this.

I don’t even agree with a bunch of this. Young people just need to really read and accept challenging their thinking.

Peikoff does a very good job presenting Rand’s ideas and theories. He slips at times with flimsy writing and obtuse examples. This is especially the case in his presenting ideas of ‘Capitalism’ being “real” after hundreds of pages explaining the importance of empirical truth. It’s pretty tough to support the man-imagined ideas of financial exchange as a truth that exists beyond faith, a mostly bad term for Rand. Especially when Peikoff labels those who won’t accept Rand’s view of ‘Capitalism’ as “stupid”.

Peikoff also struggles through the chapter about ‘Art’ with the similar problems with ‘capitalism’. Both also happen to be the last chapters.

This is mostly not the case. Peikoff does an excellent job of presenting Rand’s ideas of “Whim Worship”. Some despise her views of this. i think those against the idea would have trouble getting around Peikoff’s cogent explanation.

Another excellent entry is laying out the ideas of “rights” in the ‘Government’ chapter. Separating Rand’s views of “rights” (Which i disagree with) and how “rights” are generally perceived (Which i also disagree with). The chapter is well crafted and worded. Great work!

I’ll write the book starts off clunky and, as pages turned, gets very focused. The last few chapters are a bit sloppy. The last chapter seems to have been constructed separately and is the best part of the books.

Bottom line: i recommend this book. 9 out of 10 points.

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