A novelist and philosopher born in Russia who emigrated to the United States after the 1917 Revolution. She became famous with novels such as Atlas Shrugged, in which individualist heroes face collectivist societies. She created her own philosophical system defending reason, self-interest, and unfettered capitalism, and she remains controversial today.
Core ideas
Reality exists independently of the mind, and only reason can know it
Pursuing one's own rational self-interest is a virtue, not a vice
Free-market capitalism is the only system that respects individual rights
The tradition: Objectivist
Objectivism is the name Rand gave to her own philosophy: objective reality, reason as a guide, ethical egoism, and capitalism. She is the founder and chief reference of this current.
