The Fountainhead - Howard Roark Speech

This is the famous courtroom scene from The Fountainhead in which Howard Roark defends himself. I'm not exactly very fond of Ayn Rand or the objectivist philosophy; her logic is faulty (though in very subtle ways) and her language highly inflammatory and bifurcating. Nevertheless, she is an interesting thinker, and worth knowing how to refute ;)

One thing that I always found interesting and extremely ironic whenever I met 'objectivists' is that even though Rand seems to promote individuality and creative thinking, just about every single follower of hers basically recites exactly the very same lines all the time, almost word by word. How exactly does that make them individual thinkers is simply beyond me... As far as I can tell, they are not individuals, they are blind followers of Rand who think they are individuals. Isn't that the ultimate marketing campaign?

Anyway, that's not to say there aren't a lot of very interesting and thought provoking ideas in her writings, as this clip clearly shows. Enjoy, and think about it...


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1 comment:

  1. I love and can identify with the Howard Roark character, and i have to a great extent, patterned my life after his,using music, rather than architecture, as my medium. In truth, i did it unwittingly, having read The Fountainhead, but not truly understanding it and it's implications. Anything that i do creatively, be it music composition or writing, is done to please ME and my vision. Unlike Roark, i AM willing to hear other views, and do seek input, but only from people that i respect.If people enjoy what i do, i feel as Roark did, that they will "find me."


    You would have to be a real pompous ass to follow what Rand says to the letter, a megalomaniac of epic proportions for sure!

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