Flannery O'Connor, literary theologian Book

This was a lot of fun, and it somewhat rekindled my old flame for Atlas Shrugged even as it confirmed my basic dislike for the Fountainhead. I never did read We the Living.

As with any multi-author collection, this volume has good and bad elements. Barbara Branden's contribution humanizes Ayn Rand with a really powerful grace. It's good that the book begins with this.

Another favorite was Karen Michalson's Who is Dagny Taggart?, which makes a persuasive case for Dagny as a feminist hero. Michalson draws attention to Rand's use of clever inversion in three superficially sexist or misogynistic scenes (Francisco slapping Dagny, Dagny acquiring and donning the Rearden Metal bracelet, and Dagny performing domestic work for John Galt) that, in context and with the particular construals of the characters, reveal enlightened feminist ideas. In each case, the sexist trope (abuse by a man, wearing jewelry from a man, and domestic work for a man) involve Dagny acting with self-respect according to her own rationally chosen values.

I also appreciated Sharon Presley's essay on Rand and individualist feminism. One concern I often have with libertarian feminists is that they often only discuss feminists from a century or more ago, leaving one puzzled as to whether they find anything of value in modern feminist thought. But Presley engages thoughtfully with Carol Gilligan and her ethics of care, finding (correctly, in my view) that there is a synthesis possible with care ethics and individualist values, and that a healthy individualism is pro-social.

This is a fun book to read for anyone interested in feminism who has read a little bit of Rand, whether you love or hate her or, like me, are decidedly ambivalent.