These are notes from my second session of reading The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand. It is slow going as I am taking notes, and, quite frankly, haven't been in the right mindset to read this particular book for the past few days. But onward we go!
Peter Keating - Perfect in every way, at least outwardly. Inside he is unsure. Unsure of himself, unsure of his skills or talents, and unsure of his place in life. There are so many who suffer these same insecurities without the advantages he has. I'm not sure yet if I should feel pity for him or empathy. His mother is passive-aggressive and manipulative. His friends don't seem to really be friends because his facade, his public face, is too impenetrable. I'm curious to see where things go and what he ends up representing.
Page 38
New word: Pilaster
Definitions: The pilaster is an architectural element in classical architecture used to give the appearance of a supporting column and to articulate an extent of wall, with only an ornamental function. It consists of a flat surface raised from the main wall surface, usually treated as though it were a column, with a capital at the top, plinth (base) at the bottom, and the various other elements. - Wikipedia
Page 45
"The Columbian Exposition of Chicago opened in the year 1893.
The Rome of two thousand years ago rose on the shores of Lake Michigan, a Rome improved by pieces of France, Spain, Athens, and every style that followed it. It was a "Dream City" of columns, triumphal arches, blue lagoons, crystal fountains and popcorn. Its architects competed on who could steal best, from the oldest source, and from the most sources at once. It spread before the eyes of a new country every structural crime ever committed in all the old ones. It was white as a plague and it spread as such."
Rand demonstrates a serious contempt of history and tradition with this passage. It almost seems as though she has gone past the point of "we shouldn't be slaves to tradition" and into a realm where nothing traditional holds any value, it just holds mankind back from necessary growth.
That seems to be a very extreme line of thought to me. I agree that traditions need to be re-assessed on a regular basis to determine whether they are still applicable to our lives, still relevant in some way. But I am definitely not in the camp that would throw the baby out with the bath water.
Traditions can be updated, changed, or even left behind if that is needed for growth. That said, it should never be done lightly or summarily. Maintaining a connection with the past is equally important as laying a path toward the future.
That's as far as I've gotten right now. More to come as I continue reading!
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