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"The Fountainhead": Dual Celebrations in 1993

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THE AYN RAND INSTITOTE THE CENTERFOR THE ADVANCEMENTOF OBJECTIVISM vol. I, NO.2 JoLY1993 "TheFountainhead": First"Anthem" DualCelebrations in 1993 EssayContest "CelebratingThe Fountainhead" is ffre Bay Hilton Hotel. Following a wine The Ayn Rand Institute'sfirst essay themeof ARI'skn L993banquetlauctbrc, reception, dinner, and a presentation conteston Ayn Rand's Anthemwas a in honorof tfu fifticth anniaersaryof the by Leonard Peikoff (seepage 5), John resounding success.More than 2,300 publicatbnof .\n Rand'sbret-knoamnwel Ridpath will serve as auctioneer for high-school freshmen and sophomores Thesecond of theseeoents is scheduledfor the primarily Fountainhead-relateditems read the 1937novelette and submitted Noaemberin Boston,while the first took from Ayn Rand's estate. Highlighiing an essay.Herc is a sampling of enfants' placein LosAngeles in April. this auction: Miss Rand'shandwritten commentson Anthemand ARI: manuscript for her last public speech, BostonGala Begins ObjectiVist Weekend "The Sanctionof the Victims." l "Eaen thoughI did not zuin a The Ayn Rand Institute's second In August, ARI will mail banquet prize,I amgrateful to the Institutet'or 1993banquet honoring TheFountainhud, invitations,auction catalogs, and mail- showingme a differentand interesting a reception hosted by SecondRenais- bid instructionsto all cunent contribu- type of book.,,,I look t'orwardto sance Books, and Leonard Peikoff's tors. Tickets for the evening arc priced readingmore Ayn Rand books.I am already Ford Hall Forum speech comprise a at $125per personand $225for couples. a fan," weekend of Objectivist-rclated activities Minimum bids on the auction items | "l utouWlike to knousmore about the lnstitute, its ideas,and teachings. in Boston,November 6-7, "1993. rangefrom $50to $4,000.As in the past, Please The ARI event will take place on proceedsfrom the event help support sendme some information, such asbooklets or pamphlets. you." the evening of November 5 at the Back ARI's efforts to advanceObjectivism. Thank | "I m by Ms. Rnnd,and (See Celebrations,p. 5) fascinated look fonaard to rendingmore!! Her zoorksare brilliant and f m aeryinter- estedin lurning moreabout her idus." | "TheAyn RandInstitute performs r.i a nobletask. Pleasesmd me member- o ship information...sothat I mayhelp \ 6 o in a smallway with yourbacking." F The first prize q winner of the $1,000 ! is Brent Stiefel,a freshmanat Columbus High School in Miami, Florida. Like most of the entrants in both of ARI's contests,he had not read any Ayn Rand writings prior to leaming of the contest. His older brcther was reading TheFoun- tainheadfor a class assignment and brought home information about both essaycontests. Upon reading Anthem, Mr. Stiefel was struckby how little dif- ference there is in many respectsbe' tween the society we live in today and the totally collectivist society portrayd in the futuristic novelette. "Anthemis not that much of an exaggeration,"he observed. His favorite subjectsare his- tory, math, and English. This summer he is reading TheFountainhead. Auctioneer John Bidpath in action showing auclion items at the Los Angeles Fountainhead event /See Anthem contest, p. 5) EighthAnnual "Fountainhead" Essay Contest Ann Marie Dobosz is the winner say from the other top papers: "She point-blank style refreshing. She is of ihe $5,000first prize in the 1993es- penetrates to fundamentals, correct not writing to impness:she has some- say contest on The Fountainhead.Her fundamentals, and even names their thing to say and strives to say it clear- essay(rcprinted on page 3) was chosen logical priorily (seeher opening para- ly and cleanly. The clincher was her as the most outstanding of the nearly graph). This senseof logical hierarchy illuminating and original contrastbe- 3,800entries submitted by high-school is rare and invaluable. I found her tween Keating and Toohey: Keating juniors and seniors. needs others' strengths while Toohey Miss Dobosz, a graduate of Dear- needs their weaknesses.The essay born (Michigan) High School,will en- showsa thinking mind at work." ter SarahLawlence College in the fall. The five winners of the $1,000sec- Shewas intrrcducedto TheFountainhead ond prizes are: Emmy Chang, from when two friends recommended it to Los Alamitos, CA, a semi-finalistin the her. What impressed her most, in the 1992 contest who plans to enter an midst of her "frustration with medi- acceieratedmedical program at North- ocrity," was Ayn Rand's emphasis on westernUniversity; Eric Dennis, a jun- "the virtues of integrity and excellence." ior from Torrey Pines High School in She re-read the novel after learning of Encinitas,CA; LeslieMichael Orchard, ARI's essay contest from her English from Algonac,MI, who will major in teachet Donald O'Hagan. This sum- journalismat CentralMichigan Univer- mer she is rcading Atlas Shrugged. 3 sily; Erin Ruble, a junior from Billings, Harry Binswangel, the final judge & sp" MT; and NatashaShekdaf, from Prince- \ '{ Brown of the winning essays,commented on ,,'l.:', . ^n1^9 ton function,NL who will attend what distinguished Miss Dobosz's es- Fountainhead Ann Marie Dobosz University this fall. (See Fountainhead contest,P.6) WhoGrades the Essays? Eachyear, only a handfulof studentpapus suruiae the intense and thoroughjudging prlcess ruhich is an integralpart of AR(s essay contests.Selecting the winners from thethousands of mtriesrequires the cooperation and uitical intelligenceof scoresof peoplewho gradethe essays.In raponseto readerintuest, we offer a glimpseaf harothe essay grading is accomplishedand who the graders are. The Grading Process The Oblectivist Graders r) Maureen Hoffman, a retired high- First, a national testing service hired The Institute's panel of Objectivist school English teacher and president by ARI assigns high-school English teachers and writers brings a variety of of the Assoc. for Rational Educafion teachers to grade all the essays for liter- professional expertise and experience to t Gary Hull, Ph.D., a philosophy ary quality and stylistic merit, This the grading process. Several are members professor at California State University- year, 702 Fountainheadessays and 69 of ARI's Board of Advisors and/or Speak- Fullerton and graduate of ARI's ad- Anthem essays passed this stage and ers Bureau, others founded or were active vanced philosophy seminars advanced tg the next levgl. in campus Objectivist clubs, some ale cur- I Shoshana Milgram Knapp, Ph.D., The second level of grading is per- rently pursuing graduate degrees, and an English professor at Virginia Poly- formed by ARI's invited panel of Ob- some have a special familiarity with either technic Instihrte and StateUniversity jectivist graders. Each essay is graded TheFountainhud or Anthem. t Edwin Locke, Ph.D., a business for philosophic content by two graders, and psychology professor at the Uni- and an essay must receive at least one Regular Fo unt ainhead graders: versity of Maryiand "A' to proceed to the final stage. Mem- I Larry Benson, a screenwriter who I Glenn Marcus, Ph.D., a lecturer/ bers of the panel report that the grad- studied the Fountainhead movie scripts writer and former Headmaster of the ing is a difficult but rewarding process, extensively in graduate school American RenaissanceSchool r) as they read and re-read the essays, o Andrew Bernstein, Ph.D., a philos- Lee Pierson, Ph.D., a psychologist rank them, and then read again. ophy and literature professor at Pace and who teachescognitive skills in corpor- Finally, all of the ",{' papers are other universities and author of 'A Teach- ate and university setfings given to a single grader to choose the er's Guide to The Fountainhud" t Ronald Pisaturo, the former 16 Fountainheadand 31 Anthem winners. I M. Northrup Buechner, Ph.D., an president of the American Renais- Over the years of the Fountainhead con- economics professor at St. John's Univer- sanceSchool test, both Harry Binswanger and sitv in New York l Linda Reardan, editor of TheIn' ]ohn " Ridpath have served as the final judge, 0 David Harriman, a philosophy stu- tellectualActiaist, a philosophy student while Michael Berliner chose the win- dent at the Claremont Graduate School, at the Claremont Graduate School, phi- ners of the first Anthem contest. At the former member of the Univ. of California- losophy instructor, former organizer secondand third levels, the judging is Santa Barbara campus Objectivist club, of the Harvard University campus anonymous-i.e., the judges do not and current participant in ARI's advanced club, and graduate of ARI's advanced know the identities of the essay writers. philosophy seminars philosophy seminars (SeeGraders, P' 6) 2 THE1993 WINNING ESSAYS THEFOUNTAINHEAD ANTHEM Ann MarieDobrez, a seniorat Durborn (Michigan)High Sctaol, BrentD. Stiefel,a frahmanat ColumbusHigh Schoolin Miami, dtox tlu thirdof tte threeFowtainhead asay topics:"For each Floida, chosethe first of the three Anthem essaytopics: of thefollowing pairs of characters,compare and contrast their 'AnthemdEicts a worldof thefuture, a collectiaistdictatorship in approachto life and their basicmotioation: h) Howard Roark whichnen theword 'l' hasoanished. Discuss the hero's struggle andHenry Cameron;(b) Peter Kuting and EllsworthToohey; tofree himself from collatiubm. Whatmalces hb oictorypossible? " (c)Gail Wynaniland Dminique Francon." The most important quality of a person-the thing that Ayn Rand's Anthetnis a triumphant story of one man's must exist beforeany other detail is considered-is a person's stmggle for individuality in a fuhrristic world where the only mind. It can be called a soul, an ego, or a self. It is the most good is the collectivegood, and where all individual thoughts important part of a person,the most sacred,and the part most and deedsare ruthlessly suppressed. often missing in people. Peopleabandon their minds and their Equality 7-2527(the name imposed upon the protagonist soulsbecause it's easierthan thinking and creating.Without by his brethren) feels initially that he was "born with a curse." a self, nothing new can be created.A personcan only absorb He is taller and more handsomethan his fellow men, but more and regurgitatewhat others have accomplishedand become.
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