"Self-sacrifice? But it is precisely the self that cannot and must not be sacrificed."
The Fountainhead.
This is a famous quote from the 1943 Ayn Rand novel which has polarized opinions ever since it's release. You're classified as either pro-Rand or anti-Rand. In a war ridden United States people thought this was her way to promote Capitalism under the alias of objectivism just like she chose to use the pseudonym Ayn Rand instead of Alisa Zinov'yevna Rosenbaum.
But looking at the theory in the hindsight and observing the current state of the world..one might easily be forgiven to think that she might have actually been correct. Purely from an Indian point of view, one could understand why this novel seems so attractive to us. Everybody thinks of himself as Howard Roark, the great architect, the pioneer of objectivism. The Man who would not bow down before the world. There is a sense of rebellion about him, albeit with a lot of calm and self-control.
And that is exactly what makes the average Indian male relate to this guy. He feels there is so much wrong being done around him, but he is helpless to do anything about it. His life is a frustrated mess and he either blames his family or associates for the state he is in. This book gives him an alternate world where in the end true principles prevail and everything is as it should be in an ideal world. But the focus is not on the book. It's on the average Indian man and his life.
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| Gary Cooper playing Howard Roark- the man people love to hate |
Right from the time one chooses Science over Commerce, to the time one gets employed, one after the other choices are based on how they should be 'good'. Good, because others think it is good. Because the family thinks it is good. But what one does not realize is that he is giving up a part of himself, his desires for others. He often thinks about his immediate family and starts planning to serve them in the future. So, in all this a sense of individuality about him is lost, a part of HIM is lost. This is not just one man, each man tries to be what others think he should be... those others think about someone else's opinion...and so the cycle goes on.This is the basic problem with our society, talk all you can about self sacrifice, but self sacrifice sounds good when it is actually for the good of others. When you mindlessly give up your dreams and desires for others, it's not sacrifice it's foolishness.
Dr. C.N. Rao was the latest to stir up a controversy when he said most IT people commit suicides because they are unhappy with their lives. Well, although there's nothing Einstein about this revelation as most people commit suicides due to unhappiness ..what is truly striking is the reasons underneath. Happiness is a state of mind which can only be achieved when one is satisfied. To satisfy the self one must look to achieve one's goals, goals decided by one's own thoughts in the purest and the most uninfluenced form, however unorthodox they might be. Only when the self is first satisfied can one then think about serving others. As Rand said, to actually mean the words " I love you" the 'I' must first be realized.
Although contrary to popular beliefs, I feel being an egotist can actually help not only the individual, but also the world. The simple answer as to how this would be possible is by asking yourself a question. What is man's eternal desire? It is Power. Power is actually respect,fame,reverence or even gaining the admiration of others. Whatever name you give it, the purpose remains the same. And this is essentially what objectivism tries to eliminate. It is the want for all these vices-which can only be given by others, that the serious flaw in our philosophy lies. One can be a successful architect to the world, but if he cannot stamp his own authority in designs and blindly follows others, the admiration ultimately turns into a thorn in the flesh for the person himself(Peter Keating anyone ?). Whereas someone who is despicable for the world, but knows the quality of his work can actually be the most content and happy person on this earth. The dependency on others is eliminated here. It is more difficult to live with something which you're good at but didn't want to be than with something which was desired.(You cannot be bad at something you desired, such is the power of human determination.) Therefore self esteem and self approval, not admiration should be a man's desire.
The Government can give nothing to deprived except which has been taken forcibly from the deserving. With all the debates ranging from whether the nation's economic policies should be inclusion based or growth based, one can do his bit by following the theories of objectivism, because if all the people religiously do what they want to without worrying about the collective good, there is no limit to which success can be achieved. No, even the sky won't be the limit. The endless universe perhaps ?
Quite ironically this would ensure the success of the society as a whole. And maybe, just maybe inclusion won't be such a major issue. Nor would be suicide and unhappiness.
Therefore is it not selfishness which is the true form of altruism ?
Although contrary to popular beliefs, I feel being an egotist can actually help not only the individual, but also the world. The simple answer as to how this would be possible is by asking yourself a question. What is man's eternal desire? It is Power. Power is actually respect,fame,reverence or even gaining the admiration of others. Whatever name you give it, the purpose remains the same. And this is essentially what objectivism tries to eliminate. It is the want for all these vices-which can only be given by others, that the serious flaw in our philosophy lies. One can be a successful architect to the world, but if he cannot stamp his own authority in designs and blindly follows others, the admiration ultimately turns into a thorn in the flesh for the person himself(Peter Keating anyone ?). Whereas someone who is despicable for the world, but knows the quality of his work can actually be the most content and happy person on this earth. The dependency on others is eliminated here. It is more difficult to live with something which you're good at but didn't want to be than with something which was desired.(You cannot be bad at something you desired, such is the power of human determination.) Therefore self esteem and self approval, not admiration should be a man's desire.
The Government can give nothing to deprived except which has been taken forcibly from the deserving. With all the debates ranging from whether the nation's economic policies should be inclusion based or growth based, one can do his bit by following the theories of objectivism, because if all the people religiously do what they want to without worrying about the collective good, there is no limit to which success can be achieved. No, even the sky won't be the limit. The endless universe perhaps ?
Quite ironically this would ensure the success of the society as a whole. And maybe, just maybe inclusion won't be such a major issue. Nor would be suicide and unhappiness.
Therefore is it not selfishness which is the true form of altruism ?
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