On Ayn Rand
Encyclopedia
On Ayn Rand is a book about the life and thought of 20th-century philosopher Ayn Rand
, written by scholar Allan Gotthelf
and published in early 2000 by Wadsworth Publishing (now part of Cengage Learning
) in its Wadsworth Philosophers series.
scholar Tara Smith reviewed the work for The Review of Metaphysics and described it as "an admirably essentialized review" that "joins scholarly rigor with firsthand knowledge of Rand’s thought to provide a systematic introduction to Rand’s philosophy." Smith does find some of Gotthelf's explanations to be "slightly too abbreviated for the targeted audience" and finds his brief treatment of some topics to be "somewhat frustrating."
In a review in Teaching Philosophy, Irfan Khawaja says, "Gotthelf’s illuminating account of Rand’s epistemology offers an intriguing point of entry... as well as an object lesson on the relationship between epistemology and ethics... On Ayn Rand is a remarkable success... I can’t think of a piece of writing that better conveys both the systematicity and the grandeur of Rand’s thought than the last four pages of Gotthelf’s book." Scholar Edward W. Younkins also praised the work, calling it a "fine" but shorter version of Objectivist philosopher Leonard Peikoff
's book about Rand's philosophy.
In a review, Rand scholar Chris Matthew Sciabarra
welcomes the addition of another book to the literature about Rand, but criticizes Gotthelf for not addressing most other secondary works about Rand, in particular accusing him of "refusal to mention any non-orthodox works." Sciabarra says the book suffers from an "orthodox interpretation" of Rand's life and ideas, and also gives insufficient attention to her politics and aesthetics.
In a paper on the critical neglect of Rand's aesthetic philosophy, Michelle Marder Kamhi and Louis Torres criticized Gotthelf for spending a mere half a page of the book discussing the topic. Kamhi and Torres also criticised Gotthelf's statement that one's sense of life is directly dependent on philosophy (in contrast to Rand), and his uncritical acceptance of Rand's definition of romantic art in terms of the acceptance of man's free will
.
Ayn Rand
Ayn Rand was a Russian-American novelist, philosopher, playwright, and screenwriter. She is known for her two best-selling novels The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged and for developing a philosophical system she called Objectivism....
, written by scholar Allan Gotthelf
Allan Gotthelf
Allan Gotthelf is an American philosopher, and a recognized authority on the philosophies of both Aristotle and Ayn Rand.-Academic career:...
and published in early 2000 by Wadsworth Publishing (now part of Cengage Learning
Cengage Learning
Cengage Learning is a publisher of print and digital information services for the academic, professional and library markets, and delivers customized learning solutions for colleges, universities, professors, students, libraries, government agencies, corporations and professionals around the...
) in its Wadsworth Philosophers series.
Reception
ObjectivistObjectivism (Ayn Rand)
Objectivism is a philosophy created by the Russian-American philosopher and novelist Ayn Rand . Objectivism holds that reality exists independent of consciousness, that human beings have direct contact with reality through sense perception, that one can attain objective knowledge from perception...
scholar Tara Smith reviewed the work for The Review of Metaphysics and described it as "an admirably essentialized review" that "joins scholarly rigor with firsthand knowledge of Rand’s thought to provide a systematic introduction to Rand’s philosophy." Smith does find some of Gotthelf's explanations to be "slightly too abbreviated for the targeted audience" and finds his brief treatment of some topics to be "somewhat frustrating."
In a review in Teaching Philosophy, Irfan Khawaja says, "Gotthelf’s illuminating account of Rand’s epistemology offers an intriguing point of entry... as well as an object lesson on the relationship between epistemology and ethics... On Ayn Rand is a remarkable success... I can’t think of a piece of writing that better conveys both the systematicity and the grandeur of Rand’s thought than the last four pages of Gotthelf’s book." Scholar Edward W. Younkins also praised the work, calling it a "fine" but shorter version of Objectivist philosopher Leonard Peikoff
Leonard Peikoff
Leonard S. Peikoff is a Canadian-American philosopher. He is an author, a leading advocate of Objectivism and the founder of the Ayn Rand Institute. A former professor of philosophy, he was designated by the novelist Ayn Rand as heir to her estate...
's book about Rand's philosophy.
In a review, Rand scholar Chris Matthew Sciabarra
Chris Matthew Sciabarra
Chris Matthew Sciabarra is a Brooklyn, New York-based political theorist. He is the author of three scholarly books—Ayn Rand: The Russian Radical; Marx, Hayek, and Utopia; and Total Freedom: Toward a Dialectical Libertarianism—as well several shorter works...
welcomes the addition of another book to the literature about Rand, but criticizes Gotthelf for not addressing most other secondary works about Rand, in particular accusing him of "refusal to mention any non-orthodox works." Sciabarra says the book suffers from an "orthodox interpretation" of Rand's life and ideas, and also gives insufficient attention to her politics and aesthetics.
In a paper on the critical neglect of Rand's aesthetic philosophy, Michelle Marder Kamhi and Louis Torres criticized Gotthelf for spending a mere half a page of the book discussing the topic. Kamhi and Torres also criticised Gotthelf's statement that one's sense of life is directly dependent on philosophy (in contrast to Rand), and his uncritical acceptance of Rand's definition of romantic art in terms of the acceptance of man's free will
Free will
"To make my own decisions whether I am successful or not due to uncontrollable forces" -Troy MorrisonA pragmatic definition of free willFree will is the ability of agents to make choices free from certain kinds of constraints. The existence of free will and its exact nature and definition have long...
.
External links
- "Allan Gotthelf talks about his book, On Ayn Rand", internet radio interview from Prodos.com