I've been a little tied up of late, but a couple of new pieces will be up soon. One will be on the suprising roots of the Objectivist ethics, the other a wrapup on TPARC.
I should also add that I greatly respect a lot of what Chris MS has done with Rand, even if I don't agree with much of it. The man has had to put up with seven shades of sh*t!
I have reservations about the extent to which dialectics framed Rand's thought and also I do share some of the ARI types doubts about the influence of Russian philosophy or Russian anything on Rand given the great degree of her anti-Russian hatred. I do for once agree with Barbara Branden that Rand's Jewish background was the least important thing in the world to her. Her support for Israel was strictly a Cowboys vs. Injuns thing. So I can't put Rand's anti-Russian hatred to being Jewish since the Bolshevik Revolution was very heavily Jewish and Rand loathed them. I think the main point of Chris's work is the discussion of Rand's opposition to dualism in all forms. I think that's the main point that he made. Oh, he had the usual sniping from the ARI lowlife like John Ridpath, ad nauseum, but that never bothered Chris. Funny how ARI is EITHER obnoxious Jews, the predominant element or obnoxious WASPS like Locke, Hull, Ridpath, etc. No Micks, no WOPS, no blacks, etc. So if you define the basic thesis as her battle against dualism his book is compelling, if you define it as Russian influence on Rand, then no.
Read The Russian Radical by Chris Matthew Sciabarra for the only objecgtive, intelligent, scholarly
ReplyDeletelook at Ayn Rand.
Typoed "objective" above.
ReplyDeleteYes I've read it. I found it factually interesting, even if the basic thesis uncompelling.
ReplyDeleteI should also add that I greatly respect a lot of what Chris MS has done with Rand, even if I don't agree with much of it. The man has had to put up with seven shades of sh*t!
ReplyDeleteI have reservations about the extent to which dialectics framed
ReplyDeleteRand's thought and also I do share
some of the ARI types doubts about the influence of Russian philosophy
or Russian anything on Rand given the great degree of her anti-Russian hatred. I do for once agree with Barbara Branden that Rand's Jewish background was the least important thing in the world to her. Her support for Israel was
strictly a Cowboys vs. Injuns thing. So I can't put Rand's anti-Russian hatred to being Jewish since the Bolshevik Revolution was
very heavily Jewish and Rand loathed them. I think the main point of Chris's work is the discussion of Rand's opposition to dualism in all forms. I think that's the main point that he made. Oh, he had the usual sniping from the ARI lowlife like John Ridpath, ad nauseum, but that never bothered Chris. Funny how ARI is EITHER obnoxious Jews, the predominant element or obnoxious WASPS like Locke, Hull, Ridpath, etc. No Micks, no WOPS, no blacks, etc.
So if you define the basic thesis as her battle against dualism his
book is compelling, if you define it as Russian influence on Rand, then no.