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[[Objectivism]] (Latin ''ob-'' out of and ''iacio'' I am throwing, and Greek '''-ισμος''' or ''-ismos'' the doing of a thing) is a school of philosophy developed by [[Ayn Rand]] that holds that things in the natural world exist independently of anyone's perception of them or efforts (or lack of effort) to understand them. Objectivism also holds that ''nothing'' is provably real that one cannot ''demonstrate'' independently of one person's perception of it.

[[Objectivism]] (Latin ''ob-'' out of and ''iacio'' I am throwing, and Greek '''-ισμος''' or ''-ismos'' the doing of a thing) is a school of philosophy developed by [[Ayn Rand]] that holds that things in the natural world exist independently of anyone's perception of them or efforts (or lack of effort) to understand them. Objectivism also holds that ''nothing'' is provably real that one cannot ''demonstrate'' independently of one person's perception of it.

== History of Objectivism ==

== History of Objectivism ==

Objectivism's unabashed advocacy of capitalism often led to repeated charges that Objectivism was the ally of "big business." (In fact, on the occasion of a 1980 political demonstration called "Big Business Day," ''The Objectivist Forum'' commented quite wryly on the irony of the spectacle of hundreds of anti-business conventioneers using the services of "big business" to attend an event intended to advocate increased regulation of the largest corporations merely because they ''were'' large.) But Branden said quite clearly that the executives of large business companies ''were not'' friendly to Objectivism, because Objectivism advocates a market completely free not only of onerous taxes but also of the myriad special protections that some businesses tended to win from [[Congress]] against their competitors.

Objectivism's unabashed advocacy of capitalism often led to repeated charges that Objectivism was the ally of "big business." (In fact, on the occasion of a 1980 political demonstration called "Big Business Day," ''The Objectivist Forum'' commented quite wryly on the irony of the spectacle of hundreds of anti-business conventioneers using the services of "big business" to attend an event intended to advocate increased regulation of the largest corporations merely because they ''were'' large.) But Branden said quite clearly that the executives of large business companies ''were not'' friendly to Objectivism, because Objectivism advocates a market completely free not only of onerous taxes but also of the myriad special protections that some businesses tended to win from [[Congress]] against their competitors.

For decades, Rand did not appear to excite much enduring controversy, mainly because those who did not hold to her philosophy, or to the political theory that flows from it, generally preferred to ignore her. An early exception was the famous (some say infamous) review of Rand's ''magnum opus'', ''[[Atlas Shrugged]]'', by [[Whittaker Chambers]].<ref name=Chambers>[[Whittaker Chambers|Chambers, Whittaker]]. [http://www.nationalreview.com/flashback/flashback200501050715.asp Big Sister Is Watching You]. ''[[National Review]]'', December 28, 1957. Republished on [http://www.nationalreview.com/ National Review Online], January 5, 2005.</ref> Chambers "[[Atlas Shrugged (criticism)#Whittaker Chambers|panned]]" this novel severely and charged that Rand, and by extension Objectivism ''per se'', owed more to the harsh, "conquering-man" philosophy of [[Friedrich Nietzsche]] than to Aristotle. He also charged that Rand, in her relentless attack upon the [[Communism|Communist]] philosophy of [[Karl Marx]], had almost become that which she professed to despise. Specifically, he suggested that while Marx advocated a [[Socialism|socializing]] elite, Rand advocated a technocratic one, to which all less technically adept men must bow. Chambers' objections mirror those of Branden to the "moralizing" and dogmatic tone of much of Rand's material, in both that novel and her later essays.

For decades, Rand did not appear to excite much enduring controversy, mainly because those who did not hold to her philosophy, or to the political theory that flows from it, generally preferred to ignore her. An early exception was the famous (some say infamous) review of Rand's ''magnum opus'', ''[[Atlas Shrugged]]'', by [[Whittaker Chambers]].<ref name=Chambers>[[Whittaker Chambers|Chambers, Whittaker]]. [http://www.nationalreview.com/article/213298/big-sister-watching-you-whittaker-chambers Big Sister Is Watching You]. ''[[National Review]]'', December 28, 1957. Republished on [[National Review Online]], January 5, 2005.</ref> Chambers "[[Atlas Shrugged (criticism)#Whittaker Chambers|panned]]" this novel severely and charged that Rand, and by extension Objectivism ''per se'', owed more to the harsh, "conquering-man" philosophy of [[Friedrich Nietzsche]] than to Aristotle. He also charged that Rand, in her relentless attack upon the [[Communism|Communist]] philosophy of [[Karl Marx]], had almost become that which she professed to despise. Specifically, he suggested that while Marx advocated a [[Socialism|socializing]] elite, Rand advocated a technocratic one, to which all less technically adept men must bow. Chambers' objections mirror those of Branden to the "moralizing" and dogmatic tone of much of Rand's material, in both that novel and her later essays.

But in light of the election and increasingly [[socialism|socialistic]] policy pronouncements and recommendations of [[Barack Obama]] and his administration, Rand's ideas are (as of April 2009) undergoing a serious re-examination. [[Tax Day Tea Party]] participants reported seeing signs saying, "Ayn Rand Was Right" and "Stop Spending, or Atlas Will Shrug." The Ayn Rand Institute reports that sales of ''Atlas Shrugged'' tripled in February 2009 as compared to February 2008. They attribute this brisk increase in sales directly to the recognition by many of Barack Obama and his associates as antitypes of the [[Literary type#Villain|villains]] in the novel, and of his policies as antitypes of some of the more egregious policies of [[Mr. Thompson]] and some of other characters. [[Directive 10-289]] springs especially to mind.

But in light of the election and increasingly [[socialism|socialistic]] policy pronouncements and recommendations of [[Barack Obama]] and his administration, Rand's ideas are (as of April 2009) undergoing a serious re-examination. [[Tax Day Tea Party]] participants reported seeing signs saying, "Ayn Rand Was Right" and "Stop Spending, or Atlas Will Shrug." The Ayn Rand Institute reports that sales of ''Atlas Shrugged'' tripled in February 2009 as compared to February 2008. They attribute this brisk increase in sales directly to the recognition by many of Barack Obama and his associates as antitypes of the [[Literary type#Villain|villains]] in the novel, and of his policies as antitypes of some of the more egregious policies of [[Mr. Thompson]] and some of other characters. [[Directive 10-289]] springs especially to mind.

== References ==

== References ==

== See Also ==

== See Also ==