Ayn Rand'ın 'Atlas Shrugged' Adlı Eseri Üzerine Bir İnceleme

This study is a book review of Atlas Shrugged, the novel widely considered to be Ayn Rand’s masterpiece, approached from a philosophical perspective. This review examines the work not merely as a piece of literary fiction, but as a philosophical manifesto questioning the existential foundations of man, the function of reason, and the source of moral values. The review analyzes the “strike of the minds” taking place within the novel's dystopian atmosphere in the context of the defense of reason and productivity against mysticism and collectivism. At the center of the study lies the conflict between the mentality that views productive ability as a resource to be exploited and the rational stance that regards it as the sole means of survival. In this context, the metaphor of “the gigolo voice of science,” employed by Rand to depict intellectual corruption, is analyzed in detail through the concepts of fake value exchange and the worship of power. Furthermore, the text scrutinizes the destructive effects of traditional altruistic ethics, the objective reality based on the principle “A is A,” and the rational morality that views happiness as a moral right. Consequently, this review elucidates the novel's philosophical call, which invites the reader to cease being a passive observer and instead become the hero of their own life and mind