Rand vs. Tolkien

Over at Hit and Run, Jesse Walker puts his libertarian cred at severe risk when he blurts "I've never read Atlas Shrugged, so I don't know if there are passages in the book that undermine Jablecki's thesis." Of course, I've never read that door-stopper either, so I'm not quite as free to chuck stones as I might be. At any rate, he quotes Juliusz Jablecki's "Tales of Titans and Hobbits":

In Atlas Shrugged [the protagonists] are exceptional and it is precisely because of that quality that they became characters of the novel. Each of the Atlases is unblemished, pure, proud. Every detail of their physiognomy speaks of genius and magnificence. The Übermenschen do not simply move: they make motions full of charm and elegance. They do not simply work: they craft, always with passion and enthusiasm. They never get tired, weary or bored with what they do; they have no families, no children, no obligations; they are frightfully rational; they live only for themselves and for their occupational passions. If they happen to be businessmen, they never own little family businesses; they run huge corporations, ironworks, mines, or railway companies. In Rand's novel there is no place for moderation and inconspicuousness. Only that which is huge and effective deserves praise and attention.

Completely different, more human-like, are Tolkien's characters . . . There are men in The Lord of the Rings, to be sure, but it is the hobbits who resemble real humans the most — they are rather clumsy, neither exceptionally smart, stout, nor courageous, but good, sociable, faithful and generally cheerful. The most important characters in Tolkien's novel are actually anti-heroes — they try to stay away from the world of big politics; however, when fate throws them in its very middle, they act bravely and ultimately bring salvation.

Jablecki's conclusion is spot-on:

Given the breadth and length of both novels, the comparison of Atlas Shrugged and The Lord of the Rings could go on much longer, revealing many new themes and interpretations. It seems, however, that even the few differences sketched above allow for a tentative answer to the questions raised in the introduction. As much as Ayn Rand's novel, with its strictly modernist message, could have been at some point in the past an effective remedy against the plagues of socialism and collectivism, the world described in it does not fit today's reality and does not help in introducing the idea of natural order. Today, it is no longer necessary to protect big business from people. On the contrary, it is people who need protection from big business, which now goes hand in hand with Leviathan in trying to create a homogenous and completely atomized society.

Update: It's probably a bad thing in some formal "How to Blog" manual, but I linked to this John Scalzi post for the Heinlein content, but immediately below that was this brilliant little Rand item:

But why go on into detail about all the reasons I wouldn't want Ayn Rand for a mom when a cheap-and-simplistic Top Ten list will do? And so, without further ado:

The Top Ten Reasons You Don't Want Ayn Rand as Your Mom

10: Her not-so-secret disappointment that you weren't able to operate a speedboat the first time you saw one, even after watching the help do it for ten whole minutes.

9: Birthday gifts: Erector sets and a "Lil' Smelter" kit.

8: Pushing you to date her young male followers after she's "vetted" them is really kind of creepy.

7: At bedtime, reads you The Giving Tree as a cautionary tale.

6: Wouldn't speak to you for a week after you admitted that you kind of like useless ornamentation.

5: Her "Birds and Bees" chat to you sounds like a particularly seamy scene in a film by David Fincher.

4: Always ends arguments by throwing down a bunch of pictures of modern buildings; seems angry that you don't see the logic.

3: Dismisses your desire to visit Disneyland as "Anti-Life." She's right, of course, but you're still disappointed.

2: Tears down the house rather than let you choose the wallpaper for your room.

1: Your Babysitter: Alan Greenspan.