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We The Living

No posts!!!!

rishidixit 04-25-2006, 8:37 AM

Why no posts on this one?? Hasn't anyone read it or what??

Anyways, can we start off with discussing the characterisation of this novel. As per me, I think Kira's character and backdrop was quite close to that of Ayn Rand herself. At times, the writing seems like autobiographical.

However, my point of contention is that isn't this novel a little weak in its characterisations than 'The Fountainhead' or 'Atlas Shrugged' which had pretty strong characters?

What are your thoughts on it?

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Ken Rahman 06-14-2006, 11:34 AM
I have not read We the Living. I have read Anthem, Night of January 16th, Fountainhead, and Atlas (in that order), but I have not decided whether I will read WTL. I thought that WTL would be a let down after reading FH and AS. Any comments on this? If the book is worth reading I will probably read it, but I like the idea of Atlas being the last fiction Rand book that I have read, just seems appropraite.

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SaskBigPicture 11-07-2006, 1:51 AM
Well, I have just finished "The Fountainhead" immediately after reading "Atlas Shrugged". I intend to read "We The Living", but have recently picked up "The Ayn Rand Lexicon", "Capitalism: The Unknown Ideal" and "The Virtue of Selfishness" at my local used book store, and will read them first. I am hoping to get my wife to read "Atlas Shrugged" as well.

I am debating whether to read "Anthem" before "We The Living" or vice versa. Will decide when I get through my current reading list.

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NickOtani 12-04-2006, 1:44 PM
I read We the Living, long ago, as well as all of Rand's other books. I liked this one because it was a tragedy. I cried at the end. As such, it was much different from Rand's other fiction, which always has a happy ending, showing the hero overcoming obstacles and prevailing. This is good, but there is also value in literature which brings out other than the typical warm and fuzzy feelings of romantic fiction. I thought We the Living matched up more with the successful novels of Steinbeck, Hemingway, and Faulkner, than did Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead. Unfortunately, I guess mine is a minority opinion, one with which even Rand would disagree. bis bald, Nick

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tothink2do2b 01-22-2007, 1:28 PM

We The Living is a book that I have read four times over and highlighted and wrote about on end. I've based two papers off of this book one for a literature course and one for a geography course analyizing how the way people live is not just determined upon physical geography but the geography of the population. This is a wonderful story, and it was stated by Rand that it was as close to an autobiography that she would ever write. This being her first novel it is no surprise that it lacked the same strengths her later works possessed but the beauty of this novel is the story and the basic introduction of Ayn Rands ideals and philosophy. The reader gets to experiance through the characters what it means to live in a society that denies the individual. I would like to continue on about this novel but I must leave at the moment since a prior engagment of work beckons.

remember we become as a result of our actions and act based on our thoughts.....tothink2do2b

Re: No posts!!!!

tothink2do2b 01-22-2007, 1:28 PM

remember we become as a result of our actions and act based on our thoughts.....tothink2do2b

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Mr Squiggle 04-04-2007, 11:13 AM
I tried to read this book a year or two ago and I found it very hard to get into. I ended up putting it down just before I got half way because I could not really identify with the time, place, characters or style or writing. I think that Ran's writing style became more accessibile as she got older, but it also potentially became two dimensional and like a lecture. I don't think that I have read another book that is much of a lecture and a sermon as Atlas Shrugged and The Foundtainhead were. In fact, that is probably my main criticism of her fiction - in order to make her philosophy more relevant she created artificial characters and situations that allowed her lecture as if the world is black and white. I love objectivism, but Rand's fiction ignores the fact that the world is not black and white, that people live in between extremes, that the baddies are not always drooling, blubbering idiots, and that the goodies can't always recognise each other and will, in fact, often hate each other.

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orbit 06-23-2007, 5:01 PM
I felt that We The Living was a very strong novel - Agreed, almost autobiographical. Kira was a very strong character in my opinion and sheds light on what was probably going on in Russia when Ayn decided to leave. I cried incessantly at the end.