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Summary: THe Fountainhead
Review: This is a book that every high school kid should have the opportunity to read to better understand the meaning of individualism and it's importance in their lives.
Howard Roark is a character that epitomizes success by doing what is in his heart and mind, and not what society tells him to do.
The Fountainhead is not a book for the weak minded socially concious person who relies on American media for all their information.
Read the Fountainhead if you have the desire to be an independent thinker.
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Summary: One of my all time favorites!
Review: Ayn Rand has the uncanny ability to bring to life heroes of epic proportions. In The Fountainhead her theme is the role of an independant mind in shaping one's life as opposed to living as a second-hander who conforms to the mob and acts selflessly. Through the progression of the hero's career, Rand demonstrates the practicallity of principled action based on self-interest. It is amazing how simple this idea is yet even more amazing how few people have fully appreciated its power.If you have never read Rand, this is a good book to start with. take your time and enjoy it, and when you are done get Atlas Shrugged as soon as you can. Then prepare yourself to really start living!
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Summary: Rand is a must for all thinking readers.
Review: This is not for fans of Steven King. Sorry, but I couldn't help responding to "Brenners" review. I found this book to be intelligent, interesting, relatively fast moving, and educational. The characters are exagerated and intense, which helps get the point of the story across. The underlying dicussion is good. Egotism vs. Altruism and the individual vs. the collective. There is good drama along the way. I don't know if you will love any of the characters, maybe Howard Roark, but you will definitey loath and maybe pity some of the others. Also, don't be afraid of the 700 plus pages. You will be done before you know it.
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Summary: My personal thought
Review: When I first read "The Fountainhead" by Ayn Rand it was given to me as a graduation gift from one of my teachers. I fell in love with it as soon as I finished. It is the portrayal of a moral ideal as an end in itself. Rand has placed 'man-worship' above all and has brought out the significance of the heroic in man. Man-worshippers are those who see man's highest potential and strive to actualize it. The Fountainhead has brought out the greatness of man - the capacity, the ability, the integrity and honesty in man - as an ideal to be achieved. It is based on the idea of romanticism which means that, "It is concerned not with things as they are but with things as they might be and ought to be."
The Fountainhead is the story of an architect, Howard Roark-, whose genius and integrity was as unyielding as granite and of his desperate battle waged against the conventional standards of society. It is a tale of hatred and a story about society and how it's against a man. Ayn Rand's daringly original philosophy of 'objectivism' is the base of The Fountainhead. The motive and purpose of her writing is to bring forward the most challenging ideas that man's ego is the fountainhead of human progress. This piece of literature is great for anyone that is stepping into something new and unexplored lifestyle.
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Summary: Spare Me
Review: I read Atlas Shrugged a long time ago and thought it awful. Just to be sure, I read The Fountainhead awhile after and sure enough it was awful too. It was inconceivable to me that anyone would mistake this woman for a writer or philosopher or even someone you would want to have any more to do with than an unexpected swallow of sour milk. So now, 40 years later I find she is on lists of "classic" authors, and even a US postage stamp. Oh God, spare me. I only hope that those who proclaim her magnificance have never read Faulkner, Hemingway, Cormac McCarthy, or even Steven King.
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Summary: Should be Required Reading
Review: There was a time when the Fountainhead was required reading in many high schools, and in a large number of college architecture programs -- it still should be. This is a book that should stay accessible in your home, and it is one that you will enjoy reading more than once. Each time, you may see in it more than you did before and draw parallels to contemporary events, people, and ideas. It is not surprising that political liberals tend to hate this book and the author. The Fountainhead remains a refreshing and optimistic story that continues to inspire true free-thinkers.
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Summary: Perfection
Review: The struggle within the life of one boy, making the transition into his adulthood, and holding his eccentric morals intact, Ayn Rand's masterpiece, "the foundtainhead" is exhilerating. Howard Roark is my hero =) the perfect book for anyone who enjoys a <Good Book>. a bit long however its well worth the patience. some of the best, and most witty writing styles i have ever read. get a copy of it, or borrow one from the library, this is a MUST read.
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Summary: A journey of life
Review: This is absolutely a journey that consumes a tremendous amount of energy and a high level of thinking. Other critics are very correct that the Fountainhead does have an ideology that may not be suitable for everybody. The key to reading any book is to read between the lines and filter the author's own ideology, and then learn the important lessons that can be learned from the book. This book covers many areas in life that I was previously sub-par without understanding what caused it. Extracting one of the things said in the book:
¡§Most people go to very great length in order to convince themselves of their self-respect.¡¨
¡§Yes.¡¨
¡§And, of course, a quest for self-respect is proof of its lack.¡¨ In my opinion, this book is for those who have reached a certain level of maturity in mind to think deeply for himself (or herself). The lessons from this book would be significantly less worthy otherwise. For those in the 'other' category, it is likely preferable to learn from other sources and coming back a little later.
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Summary: THIS IS MY FAVORITE BOOK!
Review: We live in an age where tradition is scoffed and ideas are irrelevant, yet Rand masterfully shows in this novel how she works out her philosophy in real life. I certainly didn't always agree with her philosophy, yet the book encaptures the imagination and lets you disagree with her and at the same time still love the book. A MUST READ!...
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Summary: awesome!
Review: Even though I disagree with Rand's philosophy, you can still learn a great deal about being a person, about not selling your soul. Altriusm doesn't necessarily mean you will sell your soul... because of the way she distorts the true definition of altriusm and self-sacrifice, she garners a lot more attention.... perhaps it was deliberate, I don't know. Even though I have such strong disagreements at the foundation level, the secondary issues of her philosophy are valuable. The part I enjoyed the most about the book were the conversations amongst the characters. The characters are psychologically developed to the utmost... in one sense, it's almost ridiculous at how correct their judgments on one another are, but it is still within the realm of feasibility.
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