Modern Athena Posted August 7, 2012 Report Share Posted August 7, 2012 (edited) Hello. As you probably guessed, I'm new to this forum. I just wanted to introduce myself. I'm Nada, from Lebanon. I recently finished high school and will start university in the fall. I've been following some of the posts on this forum for a while and I finally took the step to sign up. Admittedly, I have stayed out of most Objectivist discussion groups because I found that some endorse Ayn Rand's ideas without relying on their own judgement. Nevertheless, I look forward to participate in this forum. My first encounter with Objectivism was about a year and a half ago (I was 16-17 of age).When I first read Atlas Shrugged I immediately fell in love with the characters, especially Dagny. The book changed my life, since then I constantly strived to better myself and fulfill my full potential. Naturally, I decided to research Objectivism in depth, and I was struck by the clarity of the ideas it represented and its overall message. I was delighted to find answers in an an area where I had doubts, questions and uncertainties. I'm proud to say that Ayn Rand has awoken my sense of life, happiness, pride and confidence. Note: I'd appreciate if you can point out my mistakes in future posts (including grammar). Edited August 7, 2012 by Modern Athena Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
softwareNerd Posted August 7, 2012 Report Share Posted August 7, 2012 Welcome to the forum. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicky Posted August 7, 2012 Report Share Posted August 7, 2012 Hey Nada. First off, writing is the only way to learn to spell a new language well. It's something that you can't possibly do by merely reading, because you guess the meanings of words and sentences based on a quick glance, and then you subconsciously ignore the rest of the details. Can't do that when writing/typing. So, even if there's no other benefit, posting as much as you can around here (and other forums) will get you that. Second, your grammar (sentence structure, use of idioms, capitalization of words etc.) is flawless. You only have trouble spelling specific words. Which, let's be honest, even native English speakers have problems with. You should use some kind of spelling software. A lot of modern browsers have one included by default (I'm using Opera, which has it - I remember Chrome had it too). They underline in red any word that is misspelled, and if you right click on the word, they provide you with the correct spelling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reidy Posted August 7, 2012 Report Share Posted August 7, 2012 Glad you cold join us. You show a better grasp of Objectivism and of English prose than many on the O-web. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Modern Athena Posted August 7, 2012 Author Report Share Posted August 7, 2012 Thank you Bear with my writing for a while until I improve it. Nicky, I fully agree. I read quite a lot of English prose but I still seem to make mistakes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eiuol Posted August 7, 2012 Report Share Posted August 7, 2012 (edited) A fellow Dagny fan! When I hear of favorite characters, usually it's Francisco, Hank, or John at top. Edited August 7, 2012 by Eiuol Modern Athena 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Modern Athena Posted August 8, 2012 Author Report Share Posted August 8, 2012 While I admire Hank, Francisco and John, Dagny is certainly the most inspirational and influential character. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
overt Posted August 10, 2012 Report Share Posted August 10, 2012 While I admire Hank, Francisco and John, Dagny is certainly the most inspirational and influential character. Why? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FeatherFall Posted August 10, 2012 Report Share Posted August 10, 2012 I can't answer for her, Overt, but for me it was because Dagny took so long to stop fighting - she didn't understand "shrugging" because she thought the battle was winnable. I also liked Ragnar for similar reasons; except, choose not to fight on the looter's terms. By the way, welcome to the forum, Modern Athena. Modern Athena 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Modern Athena Posted August 13, 2012 Author Report Share Posted August 13, 2012 I love her optimistic nature and how she struggled to live in a world where she clearly did not belong. I also admired how she faced society's disapproval. Despite being portrayed as an unsympathetic workaholic and a dirty mistress, she took pride in herself. She alone manages to challenge the society's conventional wisdom. Her purpose in life is to live up to her highest values and become worthy. Her code of values is what makes her inspirational. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jmayng Posted August 14, 2012 Report Share Posted August 14, 2012 I think Eddie Willers is an overlooked character. While he is an unremarkable man not equal in stature to the likes of John Galt and other more central characters, he is an important figure because he represents what the average person might be able to achieve; the "common man objectivist", if you will. He lacks the same level of ability that is consistent with the strikers, but he is most certainly their equal when it comes to core philosophical convictions. Characters such as Galt and Roark are visions of the ideal man, and they provide us with a standard of excellence to pursue. But I would wager that most of us aren't quite genius enough to invent something like Galt's static electricity generator. Many of us will fall into the Eddie Willers vein, and it is for this reason that he is a highly relatable and important character. But I like Dagny too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whYNOT Posted August 15, 2012 Report Share Posted August 15, 2012 I love her optimistic nature and how she struggled to live in a world where she clearly did not belong. I also admired how she faced society's disapproval. Her purpose in life is to live up to her highest values and become worthy. Her code of values is what makes her inspirational. Does that remind you of anyone you know? Excuse that - it's only that I have the utmost respect for someone who marches to their own drum beat. Irrespective of the existing time and culture. Welcome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musenji Posted August 18, 2012 Report Share Posted August 18, 2012 At first I thought it was just a palette swap of Summer, but I was wrong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
epistemologue Posted August 18, 2012 Report Share Posted August 18, 2012 I think Eddie Willers is an overlooked character. While he is an unremarkable man not equal in stature to the likes of John Galt and other more central characters, he is an important figure because he represents what the average person might be able to achieve What, dying alone in the wilderness as a miserable failure? He lacks the same level of ability that is consistent with the strikers, but he is most certainly their equal when it comes to core philosophical convictions. No, I can't disagree more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oso Posted August 18, 2012 Report Share Posted August 18, 2012 What, dying alone in the wilderness as a miserable failure? No, I can't disagree more. No, rising to the level of a trusted number two at a transcontinental railroad company. Ayn Rand was showing the great hights to which an average, good man can rise in a semi-free world, but also the fate he faces when the prime movers are removed from society. Eddie's only true failure was his inability to let a world go which was dying despite his efforts. Jmayng 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicky Posted August 18, 2012 Report Share Posted August 18, 2012 What, dying alone in the wilderness as a miserable failure? What did his failure consist of? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
[email protected] Posted September 15, 2012 Report Share Posted September 15, 2012 I agree with Nicky's suggestion that writing about things you care about is the best way to improve written communication. I disagree with the usefulness of computer spell check software as a primary tool for learning spelling. I've found that acquisition of language is most natural in the context of human relationships, so I'd rather have red ink all over a paper from a human grader correcting mistakes than a red squiggly line from a computer program. This is because I know the computer program doesn't care if I correct my writing or continue making mistakes, but that a human audience appreciates flawless writing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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