Summary

Ayn Rand exalts man as hero in her book, The Fountainhead. She makes the case for freedom and the exercise of freewill in ensuring man has the opportunity to reach his greatest potential. The struggle of the fully realized man is framed in the struggle between the independent and the dependent … the individual and the collectivist … the free man and the slave. Through her character, Howard Roark, she exhibits the struggles of Howard Roark in his pursuit of greatness and love in a society with members who impede his progress.

Howard Roark Creates

Howard Roark, the story's central character, is Ayn Rand's ideal man. Howard works as an architect for the sheer pleasure of creating work that is his. He does not compromise on his creations, and lives for the love of doing it. Roark stands as an example and source of inspiration for those around him. Even in the face of betrayal, he continues to love Dominique Francon (who has capitulated and resigned to abhor the indignant society that cannot appreciate beauty) as well as Gail Wynand. Roark makes a compelling argument for the progress of man, a progress of independent judgment and freewill that ultimately will benefit others but only if allowed to promulgate for the individual's happiness. He sums up the relationship of men in a historical context as being either dependent or independent, and warns of the Catch-22 result of dependency, where men rely on others and those who are relied on find their salvation in that very reliance.

Peter Keating Panders

Peter Keating, a former classmate of Roark, is both an adversary and dependent of Roark. Although himself an egoist, Peter lacks personal values and sacrifices his own vision for the approval of others. Rising to fame and fortune, he does so by catering to the desires of those around him while ignoring his own wants and potential. He gives society what it wants, and does nothing he wants. Keating has no personal values, but only seeks to be valuable in the eyes of those around him. He is dependent on Roark for work that he ultimately claims as his own. This dependence seems deep-rooted and originates in his relationship with his mother, who seems just as dependent on Peter for her own source of pride and accomplishment. Roark helps Peter to see the error of his ways, stating on page 604: "Peter, before you can do things for people, you must be the kind of man who can get things done. But to get things done, you must love the doing, no the secondary consequences."

Ellsworth Toohey Destroys

Ellsworth Toohey seeks power to control men and does so under the auspices of "humanitarianism" and a false sense of selflessness. Toohey destroys greatness by exalting mediocrity. He lives to empty souls and fill that void with his own power. Through encouraging sacrifice, removing some form of a man's desire, he hopes to be there to collect on that sacrifice, as he says on p. 666 "When there's service, there's someone being served." He is the 'benevolent dictator' bent on making men subservient so he can control their destiny and "well- being", effectively promoting the slave/master relationship that he extols as having existed throughout mankind (this is also noted by Roark in his courtroom speech at the end of the book). Toohey's target in this conquest is man's mind, and he sets out to muddle it by pitting men against men and establishing a sense of doubt in their being. He plots to destroy their ability to judge on their own, inciting them to think first of everything and everyone but themselves.

Gail Wynand Seeks Redemption

Gail Wynand, newspaper publisher and servant to the tastes of the masses, also seeks power. Roark befriends Gail because he realizes Gail's uncompromising desire for purity and respect for a man for what he is. Gail realizes late in life that he has catered to the taste of the public masses and sold himself short of following his own dream. Although he knows good when he sees it, he 'hides it away' (i.e. his art collection) and presents a face that he knows people want. In the end, he makes a sad attempt at redemption, but it comes too late and he is forced to regulate his paper (himself) back to the masses. Wynand's paper, his empire, is a device to be used by others … and Gail realizes this in his discussion on the yacht with Roark, where he says that he must give others the "right" to his papers – thereby potentially escalating his own demise. This is an argument for free speech, or rather freedom from speech, where private media outlets feel obligated to allow themselves to be used for a soapbox on anyone's term, thereby selling themselves short to anyone who claims "free speech." Gail uses his paper and empire as a vehicle of power over others. Gail relishes power, and with a corrupt (or lackadaisical) value system, is wrecked over the pursuit of it. Gail confronts Howard on the issue, asking "Howard, have you ever held power over a single human being?" with Howard's response being: "No. And I wouldn't take it if it were offered to me." This illustrates Roark's fundamental aversion to the power structure inherent in the dependent vs. independent. It is a lesson learned too late for Gail.

A concise summation of Ayn Rand's philosophy to me appears in several important passages in the book, notably during conversations between Howard Roark and the characters. On the yacht, the idea of 'answering' to what is yours expounds the idea of property and man's rights:

"But the ability to say 'Yes' or 'No' is the essence of all ownership. It's your ownership of your own ego. Your soul, if you wish. Your soul has a single basic function – the act of valuing. 'Yes' or 'No,' 'I wish' or I do not wish.' You can't say 'Yes' without saying 'I.' There's no affirmation without the one who affirms. In this sense, everything to which you grant your love is yours."

This passage illustrates man's rational character and inherently, the need to be able to choose, and the fruits that are evident when that ability occurs. In another dialogue between Howard and Gail on page 632, Howard sums up the dilemma of altruism:

"What else can one do if one must serve the people? If one must live for others? Either pander to everybody's wishes and be called corrupt; or impose on everybody by force your own idea of everybody's good. Can you think of any other way?"

Howard Roark is the epitome of independence, rationalism and love for fellow man. He illustrates this through example and maintains his principle. Considered uncompromising and "egotistical", he actually lives to serve fellow man by serving himself first and foremost. He lives to his fullest ability and loves men when they do the same. As Roark explains in his final dissertation, the egotist [sic] "does not exist for any other man – and he asks no other man to exist for him."

Rand, Ayn. 1994 (1943). The Fountainhead. New York: Plume Books.