Ayn Rand: The Russian Radical

by Chris Matthew Sciabarra

Release Date: August, 1995

Edition: Paperback

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This book is Meta-Rand. It is applied Objectivism.

First let me say that this book is a difficult read. Having said that, it is a must read for any serious student of Ayn Rand's "project."

Chris Sciabarra makes a strong case for the dialectical nature of Rand's philosophy. He looks at how her work might have been informed by her Russian roots and the early experiences of her life and how she developed a philosophy that attempted to integrate all aspects of Objective Reality. Objective Reality as Rand saw it is not inherently fragmented. A philosophy based on Objective Reality would of necessity integrate all aspects into a cohesive whole.

Apparently, some who regard Rand as a mystical goddess, take offense at the sharp focus that Sciabarra puts on her work. This seems odd, given that this book demonstrates a profound respect for her intellectual accomplishments.

Rand often said in her own writing that each person had a right to act in his own rational self-interest, and with that right came a moral obligation to actively seek the truth (Objective Reality) as a prerequisite of rational choice. In essense, Sciabarra has used Rand's most fundamental principles to attempt an objective analysis of her analysis. This makes his effort a moral one. Yet to some he has committed the original sin by eating from the tree of knowledge and must be cast out of the Garden of Eden for it.

My only criticism was that this book does not critique her failures or attempt to explain her tyranny toward those closest to her. But that subject has been covered in other books by those who knew her personally and is well beyond the scope of this book.

Sciabarra's thoroughly researched RUSSIAN RADICAL will remain an important contribution to Rand scholarship for many years to come.

Why the controversy about this brilliantly written book?

Those unfamiliar with the history of Ayn Rand may wonder about the widely divergent reviews *Russian Radical* has received at Amazon and elsewhere. My own view is that Sciabarra writes with superb scholarship and penetrating insight. His book is the main reason for my renewed interest in the ideas of Rand.

The critics of *Russian Radical* fall into roughly three camps. The first consists of those who appreciate Sciabarra's scholarship but disagree with his application of "dialectics" to Rand's thought. This is an honest and mostly friendly disagreement. Many of these critics are associated with the Objectivist Center of New York.

The second camp consists of Rand's "true believers" who take adoration of Rand to a near-cultish extreme. Such people, often associated with the Ayn Rand Institute, regularly attack scholars not officially sanctioned by Leonard Peikoff, Rand's heir. If you hear ad hominem attacks directed toward Sciabarra, chances are they're coming from this camp.

The third camp of critics consists of those who feel an irrational hostility toward Rand and who take out this hostility on anyone who sympathizes with Rand's beliefs. Rand, after all, advocated egoism and capitalism, making her an arch-enemy of big-government advocates and religionists.

Of course, there are also thousands of readers, me included, who appreciate Sciabarra's work and agree with it substantially. In my view, *Russian Radical* is the single most important book on Rand's ideas ever written. - Ari Armstrong