The Fountainhead
by Ayn Rand, Leonard Peikoff
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Book Reviews of The Fountainhead
Book Review: Brilliant ( Long Review )
Summary: 5 Stars
Only thing that was keeping me from ever reading The Fountainhead were the dozen number of people who recommended it to me. It is a certified guaranteed winner as per most people (most of whom cannot frame a sentence without using words such as "nice" , "intelligent" ,"sweet" etc.)
The Fountainhead is impactful,precise,gigantic in it's scope, the work of a mastermind. Ayn Rand shocked me(again) with her control over character definitions and flabbergasting logic. After I had finished reading Atlas Shrugged, I felt a bit cheated and robbed of my time. Don't get me wrong, "A.S" has my favourite book character of all time in Fransisco but it is the "giving in" nature of most characters in Atlas Shrugged that made it seem a bit too harsh to me.There is a certain preachiness in the words of John Galt that didn't really sell consequence. Moving on, about Fountainhead I'd like to say that it has the best and most well conceived perception of a human brain I've read. Some of my favourite characters in the book are Peter Keating, Gail Wynand (the best), Ellsworth Toohey (never has a character been this interesting in his villain own self) and the hero, Howard Roark. One very tactful and intentional foreplay of characters is the fact that they are all unique. You will never once in the book find a flaw or loophole in any of the characters. What I'm trying so hard to say will be better explained by examples.
Howard Roark never says more than he thinks he must in this book and often says nothing when you'd expect him to talk. Gail Wynand doesn't ever give away his self respect into the hands of another and never begs anyone. Ellsworth Toohey never gets himself into trouble despite the mind riots he causes most lesser people in the book.
Ayn Rand has an astounding quantity of mind. She shocks me repeatedly in this book by adding a shape to certain thoughts every 20 something year old guy goes through. I do not like the part where there is raw love between Howard Roark and Dominique because it seems a bit too barbaric and unrealistic for me to swallow. It's surprising how boring and dull the book became for a few pages when Roark and Dominique Francon meet. There is a certain sarcasm that the book displays in paragraphs containing comments made by the local people. Fountainhead was extremely funny in it's own silent subtle way at times.
WHY IS IT BETTER THAN ATLAS SHRUGGED(to me)?
I hope I do not offend anyone by comparing the two but like many readers have pointed out, most characters of The Fountainhead grow on you and towards the last few pages your pace of reading declines(intentionally). Gail Wynand with his practicality and adaptation skills makes more of a hero than any of the much exaggerated Atlas Shrugged Characters. Atlas Shrugged is an epic in itself but it doesn't manage to grip you like The Fountainhead does. Most books ignore the character details of the villains but in Fountainhead, Ellsworth Toohey gets a whole lot of pages dedicated to him.
Gail Wynand with his "I Do" yacht was easily the most eyebrow raising thing in the book. Wynand fought a life against all odds. For him to believe in his own individual existence came as a shocker to me. Wynand is very inspiring. I won't say much because the more I talk of Gail Wynand, the more I feel I'm depriving him of a quality summary.
Ellsworth Toohey made me smile with how well knew the people around him. His attention to detail and "liquid cement memory" were both very well jotted down. Dominique Francon was a bit of a mixed bag which is why I don't mention her very often. She was almost half as bad as Dagny Taggart from Atlas Shrugged.
To end what I had to say, The Fountainhead is the best book I have read in my life. It's reassuring, almost magical touch of brilliant storywriting , flawless character defintions and the much loved irony brings me down to my knees. I do not suggest this book to everyone maybe because I do not think everyone will quite understand it. In any case, Enjoy whatever works.
I loved all reviews on this book because even the negative ones make a lot of sense come to think of it.
Book Review: An American Classic
Summary: 5 Stars
Based on recommendations of several friends, I picked up Atlas Shrugged - but also Ayn Rand's earlier book, The Fountainhead. In the interest of easing into these large books, I picked the shorter, earlier work. A few weeks after finishing the book, I am still turning the ideas over in the back of my mind. As The Fountainhead is a novel written by Rand to explain her philosophy of objectivism, it is both entertaining and thought-provoking. All the while one reads this book, it helps to remember the historical setting. Published in 1943, socialism/collectivism as a philosophy of government and society were ascendant; capitalism/individualism was unfashionable in the aftermath of the Great Depression and World War I, and in the turmoil the ongoing Second World War. To those without the experience of collectivism and seeking to make sense of the tumultuous 20th century, this new philosophy had a broad appeal. Rand had a first hand taste of collectivism when her family's St. Petersburg pharmacy was confiscated by the Bolsheviks around 1920. She arrived in New York in 1926, having already developed a lifelong hatred of collectivism in all its forms.
The Fountainhead was written by Rand to explain her philosophy of objectivism. So while it is a good story, it is also (primarily) a book of ideas. The story centers around four main characters: Howard Roark & Peter Keating who travel dramatically different roads to grow from architecture students to become very different men; Ellsworth Toohey, a cynical and scheming leader/manipulater of men whose life goal is to further the cause of socialism/collectivism in the United States with himself as leader; Gail Wynand, a seedy newspaper mogul who possesses a surprisingly strong conscience and intellect in contrast to his flagship tabloid publication.
Roark is Rand's ideal: a man equally unbending in his principles in the face of vicious public criticism or lavish support, moreover he is almost entirely unaffected by his detractors. Keating is precisely the opposite, a man who only lives to beg, borrow or steal the affections and praise of others. Keating manages to be highly successful in a leading architectural firm, while secretly turning to Roark for help on his greatest projects. The inner conflict that naturally arises from his double life makes him a lackey (friend in Keating's mind) of Toohey. Toohey makes Keating feel good about himself while lavishly praising his mediocre architectural achievements in an influential column that Toohey writes in Wynand's newspaper. Toohey purposely supports the mediocrity of Keating and others because he aims to deny - even destroy - the existence of surpassing individual achievements that are the antithesis of a collectivist society. Toohey masterfully uses Wynand's newspaper as a platform for his views, yet in such a manner that few realize the eventual implications before it's too late - least of all Wynand. Finally, Dominique Francon is a singularly beautiful and brilliant woman who plays her own critical role in the lives of each of these men. Dominique's character experiences the most changes of any of the characters in the story. Her complicated relationships with each of them are variously based on love and hate, principle and expediency.
All aspects of The Fountainhead serve to illuminate ideas; as a result, readers may note the lack of change and growth in main characters whose largely static identities are necessary to the story. Further, these ideas are presented forcefully in black and white, leaving little room for real world shades of gray. The treatment of love and sex in the story will strike many readers as cynical or even offensive, while Rand's atheism is particularly strong. Readers who can set aside personal differences (such as they exist) with the author, however, will enjoy a book that inspires through its praise of achievement over mediocrity, and will also have an opportunity to reexamine their own beliefs on relationships, culture and society. The Fountainhead is an American literary classic, as relevant to our lives today as it was almost 65 years ago.
Book Review: Caveat Emptor
Summary: 4 Stars
Wow. Where to start with a book of this size, scope, and complexity?Well, first, Ayn Rand is not a goddess. The sheer number of quasi-disciples ranting on this website (and others) about how she changed their lives are not only frightening, they're missing the point. Of course, their blind adherence to her philosophy will allow them to brand me a "second-hander" or something of the sort and write off my comments as frightened or jealous. Go Googling for "Ayn Rand cult" sometime, and you'll see just how far the tentacles of this beast can stretch.
With that said, this is actually a very enjoyable book. Not often can I find myself pulled ahead from page to page by the writing style of a Harlequin Romance series novelist, while simultaneously being forced to pause and ponder some of the complex motivations of her characters or the ideas they (sometimes unconvincingly) exchanged during lengthy monologues. Rand has some very original ideas (or at least cobbles together an original synthesis of these ideas from other philosophies/ers). Her ideas on individuality, while carried here to an extreme, could stand to be applied in moderation to a culture that seems to now be run by masses of simpering Keatings who refuse to accept responsibility.
The character of Gail Wynand is, to me, the most interesting in the whole book. Though all of the characters, at various times, make decisions that seem strange based on complex motives dealing with unusual ideas of pleasure, pain, and need, Wynand does this almost constantly. He grants the people power over him by convincing himself he owns them; he befriends Roark, tries to save him, and then abandons him after Roark saves himself; the list goes on and on. Despite the woodenness and archetypicality of most of the other characters, in Wynand Rand managed to create someone genuine and believable.
And for those claiming that Roark rapes Dominique, to my recollection she does not fight back. That would make it rape. Sex can be violent, and often is, without the actual act of rape taking place. Considering how messed-up Dominique's ideas of power and pleasure are, she might just be a textbook masochist, in which case causing her sexual pain would be the highest pleasure Howard could give her.
Now for the caveats:
First, this novel displays an astounding naivete about human nature and socioeconomic theory. Especially in the wake of corporate accountability scandals, is there anyone left who actually believes that the Roarks of the world will triumph over those who are willing to sleaze around and take whatever they can whenever they can from whomever they can? The current climate in America is a strange one: Tooheys abound, but they are in Roarkian positions in society. Rand's assumptions about the nature of power and of the masses have proven not to be quite as accurate as they first seem.
I would also recommend finding out a bit about Rand's life before either slamming or idolizing this book, or any of her others. For instance, knowing that her family's store was taken over by the state in Russia, forcing her family into poverty when she was still a child, can help put into perspective her near-hysterical insistence that collectivism can never work, EVER, IN ANY FORM!!!(etc...). And knowing a bit about her circle of devotees and their practices, such as a modified process of expulsion and banishment for members that Rand disagreed with, can show what the world would be like populated with megalomaniacs like Roark, or Rand herself.
Overall, this is a very thought-provoking, enjoyable read, to be read by anyone frustrated with the vapidity and self-conscious posturing of most modern novels. Just don't get sucked one way or the other by the raging controversies and you'll come out of it enriched and (possibly) more understanding of the mindset of anyone you know who may seem to behave like Roark at times.
And to those who whine that Roark's ending speech is too long, pick up Atlas Shrugged. If memory serves, John Galt's ending speech is at least four times as long.
Book Review: Fantastic book
Summary: 5 Stars
I had a hard time putting this book down. Considering the length of it, this shows how interesting it was. There were 5 main characters, Howard Roark, Dominique Francon, Peter Keating, Gail Wynand and Ellsworth Toohey. Each character was well developed in a sense that once you were in their head you knew what they were going to do next, with one exception. I felt Dominique Francon's character was frequently inconsistent and her motivations at times pretty muddy.
The book takes you from before Howard and Peter finish college until about 20 years later. The story parallels these two men's careers as architects. They covered the architecture aspect just enough so you could see where the argument was but, not to the point where it would lose the readers. In this aspect, you are under no doubt that Howard is passionate about his craft and Peter is merely giving it lip service. Peter is into architecture as an end to a means. It has the pontential of making him popular. Most of the disputes in architecture center around the traditional versus modernistic view point. Traditional meaning keeping to the Greek Porticos and decorative features of the past versus a style more centered on function. Howard is dedicated to the fact that form should fit function.
Mostly this book centers on the inner lives of the characters and the forces that affect their personal decisions.
Howard is an end to himself, where Peter does not exist unless someone else is in the room. These two characters choices are about as opposite as can be found.
Ellsworth Toohey, whom is mentioned in passing early on, gets further developed later in the book and provides a manipulating force in Peter's life & that of many others. This character early in his life discovered the two extremes of personalities as Howard and Peter and has discovered the secret of using the "Peter Keatings" of the world.
Gail Wynand is an even more complex character than Ellsworth in the sense that he at one point in time stood alone, but at some point due to some various situations in his youth, became power hungry and decided on a similar path as Ellsworth Toohey. However, he never quite consciously made this choice and really was almost unaware of the path he chose & his dependency on the people he controlled.
Dominique Francon, never really gets developed to the same point as the male characters. Early on as a co-worker to Ellsworth Toohey and the daughter of Peter's employer, she is shiftless and comes across as just spiteful. You are not sure if she is a Toohey disciple or worse. Later on in her dealing with Howard, Peter and Gail, her motives and logic are still a bit ill defined. I think Ayn Rand was negligent in giving her female character's the necessary development in the book for her to be understood. Considering that she wrote this in the 1930s and 40s and the fact that the character had 3 husbands, this may have been the furthest she dared to go, lest the reading audience would unnecessarily focus on that.
Much of this book is dialogue between the characters, you have to follow it closely. Some of Ellsworth Toohey's one on ones with the various characters make you think of the many political speeches we hear every day. Then, when you consider the black heart of the character, it is frightening.
I think a person in their teens and 20s would walk away from this book with a different take than one in their 40s, as I am. An idealistic 20 year old still believes there are these singular characters out there like Howard and Peter, etc. They would get quickly discouraged with others and themselves, when they walked away from this book. An older person would recognize that most people have of blend of characters and these change with time. Then, one can only hope that we have more Howard than Peter & hope we are not deluding ourselves like Gail Wynand.
An excellent book, I am under no doubt why it is a classic.
Book Review: A powerful artistic statement.
Summary: 5 Stars
While I am by no means an objectivist, The Fountainhead is one of my favorite books. Why? Because its theme reflects and glorifies my deepest values of art.This is the story about two architects. One, Howard Roark, is a brilliant yet radical artist who wishes to design buildings strictly to satisfy his own desire to create. His uncompromising and unusual designs get him kicked out of school, and he heads to New York to start a career. Roark is pensive man, impossibly confident, proud, and never sees himself or his work in relation to others. He judges himself strictly according to his own values. Truly an independent man. He endeavors to please no one but himself.
The other architect is Peter Keating. Keating is also a brilliant young man, but he lacks Roark's sense of assurance and individuality. Lacking self-confidence, he feeds on the flattery and can only exist on others' opinions. His designs are unoriginal menageries of past architectural conventions, and he must compromise artistic integrity for satisfying everyone else.
The book spends much of its time following these two men and their careers. Keating meets with easy success thanks to his mainstream designs that make everyone happy. Roark often struggles to find work with his atypical designs, and his refusal to accommodate the desires of the client makes things tricky. The Fountainhead's objective is to show why Roark is the hero and Keating is the "bad guy." (There's other "bad guys" that come into the plot later with their own complexities, but let's keep the review simple.)
One problem is already evident. Architecture is largely comparable to any other business...it's about serving the customer. If someone wants a "lame" Greek- or Renaissance-style home, an architect isn't necessarily inferior as a person because he's trying to do good business.
But this book is not about architecture. To me, it's about a heroic artist. Architecture is just the vehicle with which Roark's story is told (Rand could have made Roark a musician, or something). In any case, The Fountainhead makes Rand's case (that man's ego generates the desire to create) in a striking manner. I think the ideas in this novel have tremendous impact, especially today.
...
You see, The Fountainhead, despite the faults of Ayn Rand's philosophy (more completely explored in Atlas Shrugged, another good book), is a powerful story because of its credo on art and some other themes that can be extrapolated through Roark. And Roark is a fantastic hero. Yes, in standard terms he's a self-absorbed sociopath (although he does get friends later), but he has many great qualities. He's honest, he knows what he wants, he's a genius, he's individualistic, and perfectly happy with himself. Is he the perfect man (as Rand would have it)? Probably not, but in The Fountainhead he's the perfect hero.
Many have faulted The Fountainhead for being a naive projection of ideals, for its unrealistically black and white characters, and didactic writing. The didactic thing bothered me -- later in the book there's parts where Rand loses that narrative objectivity and gets a bit pushy instead of just letting the character convey the ideas and letting the reader see things himself. But as for the romantic and black & white elements, I think those are part of makes the book so much more powerful. The message would have been suffocated by characters possessing a mix of good and bad qualities. With Roark being "white" and Keating and Ellsworth Toohey being unambiguously "black," Rand makes her message remarkably powerful.
And I also think Rand's a great writer. She can get more out of a person's physical description than any author I've read, and the way she captures that lucid sense of greatness in Roark's buildings is pretty magnificent. As for Roark...I wouldn't want to be him, but he is a great hero. One that I'll never forget.