Ayn Rand, Atlas Shrugged, and Bioshock
Here’s a snippet from a New York Times article about “Atlas Shrugged” by Ayn Rand and how Alan Greenspan, part of the Collective social circle with Ayn Rand, responded to early criticism of the book:
Shortly after “Atlas Shrugged” was published in 1957, Mr. Greenspan wrote a letter to The New York Times to counter a critic’s comment that “the book was written out of hate.” Mr. Greenspan wrote: “‘Atlas Shrugged’ is a celebration of life and happiness. Justice is unrelenting. Creative individuals and undeviating purpose and rationality achieve joy and fulfillment. Parasites who persistently avoid either purpose or reason perish as they should.”
(From Ayn Rand’s Literature of Capitalism – New York Times )
Well, it ends up that I’m currently playing the fantastic game Bioshock for the Xbox 360 right now. Sure, it’s great fun and all and fantastic graphics, but the back story of this underwater city of Rapture is especially engaging for me because it’s about a failed Ayn Rand hero-like figure and this great endeavor he brought about.
The word “parasite” above stands out because it is often referred to in the unraveling story (you find lots of recorded diaries) and posters around Rapture. Rather than “Who is John Galt?” you see “Who is Atlas?” posters.
Just as Ayn Rand wrote about a failed communist community, Bioshock lets you have a peek into a failed Objectivist community and the issues and breakdowns that ensued.
Fifty years in the making…
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