visaplace Posted July 17, 2004 Report Share Posted July 17, 2004 Not much has been said here about Ayn Rand's amazing achievements in philosophy. She is the Thomas Edison of philosophy. Her discoveries are remarkable. I have been a student of Objectivism since 1988 and I am still amazed at her accomplishments as a philosopher and novelist. One of the rewarads of understanding Objectivism is the admiration of the woman who discovered it. I am not a scientist so I cannot fully appreciate the greatness of someone like Thomas Edison despite the fact that I enjoy the benefits of his discoveries on a daily basis. With Ayn Rand, however, having a solid grasp of her ideas--despite the fact that they are not widely known and therefore not practiced in our culture--I get the benefit of experiencing intense admiration for another human being. Not only has she discovered true ideas in philosophy, she has expressed them though remarkable works of fiction. 15 years after reading Atlas for the first time, I still sit here in awe of Ayn Rand. Admiration of this nature is very personal and enjoyable even though I have never met her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Rexton Posted July 17, 2004 Report Share Posted July 17, 2004 It need not be stated. It is implicit in the very fact that this forum even exists! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephen_speicher Posted July 18, 2004 Report Share Posted July 18, 2004 It need not be stated. It need not be stated, but I for one am glad that it was. It is implicit in the very fact that this forum even exists! So then, I need not tell my wife just how much I love her because that is implicit in the fact of staying married? Tom, the act of making some things explicit is a way of objectifying what we feel. I think we should acknowledge and applaud visaplace's expression of tribute to Ayn Rand, not tell him he need not have done it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Rexton Posted July 18, 2004 Report Share Posted July 18, 2004 It's just such an obvious fact to me that it was like saying, "Ayn Rand wrote Atlas Shrugged, why doesn't anybody create a thread and explicity state that?" I am sure almost all of us are in awe of Ayn Rand. But, yes, I agree, we do need to be explicit about certain obvious facts once in a while. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
visaplace Posted July 18, 2004 Author Report Share Posted July 18, 2004 Tom It needs to be stated and often. Shout it from the roof tops. It is more important to praise the good than to condemn the bad. That is what is obvious. I would have loved have met Ayn Rand in person just to say to her "Thank You". I bet she would have liked to hear it--even though she knew the significance of her accomplishments. And I would have liked to say it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jerry Story Posted July 18, 2004 Report Share Posted July 18, 2004 Not much has been said here about Ayn Rand's amazing achievements in philosophy. She is the Thomas Edison of philosophy. Her discoveries are remarkable. I have been a student of Objectivism since 1988 and I am still amazed at her accomplishments as a philosopher and novelist. One of the rewarads of understanding Objectivism is the admiration of the woman who discovered it. I am not a scientist so I cannot fully appreciate the greatness of someone like Thomas Edison despite the fact that I enjoy the benefits of his discoveries on a daily basis. With Ayn Rand, however, having a solid grasp of her ideas--despite the fact that they are not widely known and therefore not practiced in our culture--I get the benefit of experiencing intense admiration for another human being. Not only has she discovered true ideas in philosophy, she has expressed them though remarkable works of fiction. 15 years after reading Atlas for the first time, I still sit here in awe of Ayn Rand. Admiration of this nature is very personal and enjoyable even though I have never met her. I would have compared Ayn Rand with Isaac Newton instead of Thomas Edison. Edison was an inventor, Newton was a discoverer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephen_speicher Posted July 18, 2004 Report Share Posted July 18, 2004 Tom It needs to be stated and often. Shout it from the roof tops. It is more important to praise the good than to condemn the bad. That is what is obvious. Amen to that! I would have loved have met Ayn Rand in person just to say to her "Thank You". I bet she would have liked to hear it--even though she knew the significance of her accomplishments. And I would have liked to say it. And, she would have enjoyed it, when it came from understanding. I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to say thanks to her many times, in different ways. One particular time was really interesting. After a very early NBI lecture on art, Miss Rand came by at a coffee shop some of us went to after the lecture. I had just heard the idea of art as emotional fuel -- of looking up to one's ideal -- and I said to Miss Rand that we had her writings to give us that fuel and we had her writings as the highest expression of our ideals, but what about her? Where does she go to get the kind of emotional fuel that represents her highest ideals? With a twinkle in her eye she told me that I was very presumptuous to ask, but that she really appreciated the thought and concern. Of course, there were many works of art that gave Ayn Rand the emotional fuel that we all need. But, keep in mind that she herself had to create the highest expression of her ideals, thereby satisfying her own need on the highest level, and thereby giving us a gift so great that we could never return with a stamping marked "Paid in full." So, yes, visaplace, I agree, we cannot say "Thank you, Ayn Rand," enough. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AshRyan Posted July 25, 2004 Report Share Posted July 25, 2004 Not much has been said here about Ayn Rand's amazing achievements in philosophy. How much of this site have you looked at so far? A quick search turned up several such statements. Still, I agree with you, and there's nothing wrong with saying it again--especially as well as you've said it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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