"Atlas Shrugged"

Book Review # 105185

English > Analysis
Literature

"Atlas Shrugged"

This paper provides an analysis of Ayn Rand's beliefs in "Atlas Shrugged".

953 words () | 1 source | MLA | 2008 United States

Paper Summary:

The paper relates that Ayn Rand's "Atlas Shrugged" is set some time in the future in the United States, which is experiencing a severe economic depression. The paper explains that the destruction of the railroad in the novel is a metaphor for the rise in socialism and the end of capitalistic competition in its purest form. The paper also discusses Rand's fears of a socialist society, one which is subordinate to an irrational majority that is drunk with power and greed. The paper further discusses Rand's belief that a government who strips individuals of rights and values will only lead to despair and hopelessness in the end.

Outline:
Introduction
Factors That Make the Destruction of the Phoenix Durango Railroad Possible
Relation of the Meaning and Theme of Atlas Shrugged to the Destruction Factors of the Phoenix-Durango

From the Paper:

"The influential characters in the novel include John Galt who initiates, conceives and implements the strike of the great minds, and invents the motor and the "destroyer" (343). Dagny Taggert is the vice president of Taggart Transcontinental railroad, who tries to keep her railroad afloat and out of the hands of looters. She eventually joins in a strike against the looters. Hank Reardon is a steel baron, one of the nation's greatest industrialists, and Dagny's lover. He also joins the strike against the looters. Francisco d'Anconia is a hedonist, playboy, a copper industrialist, and the wealthiest man in the world, who is an ally of Galt and the first to join him on strike. He is Dagny's first lover and suffers the most for joining the strike. Dan Conway is the builder and owner of the Phoenix-Durango Railroad, which is a dominant force in the southwest United States, and overtakes Taggart Transcontinental as Colorado's major freight transporter."