Ayn Rand produces a novel that indiscreetly portrays the laws and personalities of an imperfectly perfect society through her characters who each possess a different facet of the society in which she presents. Her protagonist, a man by the name of Howard Roark who in the beginning of the novel, is an unsuccessful architect who refuses to objectify his creativity to conform to the means of a society that continuously rejects his uniqueness because it is viewed by many as
“untraditional”. No matter how many times the world rejects his ideas, he still remains true to himself and what he believes in which is the whole meaning behind his character which ultimately is meant to represent the ideal man. Roark never conforms to society, and he doesn’t
change
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Ellsworth Toohey and Gail Wynand are the exact opposites of Howard Roark but are very similar to each other in their need to obtain power over the people around them in the sense that they are able to manipulate the minds of those who appear inferior to them and by ruthlessly finding ways to alter reality to benefit them. Both Toohey and Wynand sought out to exploit Roark.
Ellsworth for starters, vowed to himself that he would do anything in his power to corrupt the minds of those around him. Rand discreetly creates Toohey to represent the side of mankind that is all about power, corruption and manipulation by giving him characteristics that paint him to be the antagonist; an anti-social, malevolent being who seeks to control the system of normality in his society which Roark fails to conform to deeming him as a social reject. Toohey is Roark’s polar opposite for he believed in a world that possessed no originality, where
"[...] the thought of each man will not be his own, but an attempt to guess the thought of the brain of his neighbor who'll have no thought of his own [...]" which was exactly what Roark wanted
For example, he gains knowledge that a neighbour took from the churches strong box. He went to the family and slyly said he will keep their secret and will be ready to deal with some timber with them. Meaning he expects a good deal or he will exploit their secret. He also controls his wife, Amelia and their marriage to the point that Amelia is so fearful that she is willing to sacrifice her other children to protect her secret. He keeps her secret as a threat to exploit it when needed or to be offered for something that benefit his manipulating, blackmailing
By the end of the story he moves back to the farm and goes back to be a normal person once again. He no longer feels the need of acceptance from everyone because he doesn’t need to change who is in order to fit in.
Many people everyday worry how they’ll be seen in the world. You will either be loved for being the ideal person, or live a life of shame and sorrow because you chose or have to be different than others. I believe that the theme of the story is best represented as, Don’t conform to society, allow society to conform to you. In the tragedy genre short story “The Scarlet Ibis” written by James Hurst we receive a first hand account of how cruel a society can be. Doodle died only because someone tried too hard to change someone who didn’t want as much to be changed. The opinions of society can completely alter how one’s life will play out.
his character? Is he not as smart as he thinks he is? Is he a fool,
When Roark said in the courtroom, "Independence is the only gauge of human virtue and value, what a man is and makes of himself, not what he has or hasn't for others", he summarized the whole philosophy in these handful of words. To Roark, independence meant everything. From this one value of his arose all his other values and qualities. To him, there was no substitute and no alternative to independence. He held no authority above the judgement of his mind, he held no one higher than himself. Roark felt a fundamental indifference towards others -- he cared two hoots about what the world thought of him.
...ewarding a good architect like it could be expected from a critic, rather Toohey cared only about changing the direction of the unstoppable force that was Howard Roark. Toohey understood in the fullest that Roark would prove to be incontrovertible, and also understood that the only way to stop him from attaining universal acclaim in the world of architecture would be by filling the space before Roark could reach it.
He has the opportunity to get a formal education and see the difference between both societies so that he may learn what each society's weaknesses are, no one society is perfect. Instead, he chooses to make it an uphill battle, taking on White society as a whole and never seeing the good in it because he is too busy looking for the differences. He speaks of an Indian man at the reservation, Alex Bodidash who tries to have it both ways. ." . . and tries to keep his home to white standards. Funny that my people should be falling ever behind."
We are not only given the thoughts of the character but are also provided with a
The novel is a constant war between altruism and egotism. Howard Roark is a true egoist, he has no desire to be involved in others business, he just wants to live up to his ideals and morals for architecture. On the other hand there is Toohey, who is what we would describe as a second-hander. He uses altruism to make men believe they need to live for others and put others before themselves. Peter was already an altruist before he met Toohey, but he still fell victim to his beliefs making the reader see that he is supposed to be selfless only it seems selfish.
When a person is in power, situations arouse where they can acquire anything by lying, bribing, conning, or stealing. With these in mind anybody in power could easily become a powerful foe.
Power is both a mental and physical characteristic that people define through knowledge, strength, and money. People who embody these traits are exceedingly hard to come by and almost cease to exist. In today’s age it is a demanding task to find a person who has absolutely mastered a specific trade. For an individual to become powerful they must acquire a vast amount of knowledge in that subject area to convince others and prove their arguments factual. A knowledgeable being will have a sharp edge over competitors allowing them to rise to the top, leaving opponents in the dust. People who have obtained a substantial amount of strength are more likely to be successful when attempting tasks and missions. An individual who has strength has more stability, courage, and fortitude. A person who displays these attributes has what it takes to control large amounts of people as well as face those people in a devastating situation. In this society it is impossible to gain access to power without one very valuable resource. Most people spend a rather large portion of their day either carrying, counting, or spending this power-granting asset. With money an individual can purchase anything they desire and prove status to other lowlife humans. The more money a person has, the more materialistic goods they can possess. Many people who have very large quantities of...
have power are imposing their will on those with less power. The fact that at some point in the
For decades, literary works have been identified by certain themes that affect the protagonist of the novel. One of the major themes that has been countlessly discussed is “The Individual versus Society”. In this situation, the protagonist has conflicting interests, or is being antagonized by the society he lives within. Over this past summer, I have read through two novels that have both explored this common theme. As I saw the struggles that the protagonists had to traverse each day of their lives, I saw a similarity between my daily experiences and theirs.
Not only does his ignorance create the flawed character inside himself, but it also causes him to run from his fate. The significance
"Unlimited power is apt to corrupt the minds of those who possess it" [Lord Acton, British Historian]. It is human nature that the more power one desires, the more corrupt actions they have to commit to attain power. Power is the ability to have control over people and/or things. People who are powerful can, and in most cases will, create an illusion of anything they want you to see about them. This illusion can make people blind to their true intentions.