I was immediately engulfed as I
began reading Ayn Rand’s novel, Atlas Shrugged. Rand’s detailed descriptions of
characters and points of view kept me entertained as I learned more and more
about the different kinds of people there are in the novel. The story began
with Eddie Willers, a man who works for a railroad company owned by the Taggart
family. When describing Eddie, Rand mentions how he is feeling down and does
not know why. I feel like that set the mood for most of the chapter. It was far
from happy; all the characters seemed to have an internal conflict.
James Taggart, the president of the
Taggart Transcontinental is a rational man who likes to take his time before
making big decisions. I feel like I can relate most to James. As the president,
he knows he has a lot of responsibility on his plate, and he does not want to
make a mistake that can lead his company and family to bankruptcy. James
sister, on the other hand, is the complete opposite. Dagny Taggart believes she is always right. I
feel like part of her internal conflict deals with the fact she is a woman and
she is rarely given much importance when compared to her brother. So, to make
herself feel better, she pressures her brother into doing what she wants, which
is to buy metal from Rearden. Hank Rearden, the proud owner of a metal and
steel company is the last character introduced in the first two chapters.
Rearden has a strong internal conflict involving his family and work life. He
cannot seem to find the right balance between the two and therefore gives one
much more attention than the other. I am very interested in continuing the
book, hopefully Ayn Rand continues to introduce more problems and characters
and characters with problems.
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