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About the Program: Have you ever read one of Ayn Rand’s thought-provoking novels? Now’s the time! Enter an Ayn Rand Institute (ARI) essay contest and you’ll have a chance to win thousands of dollars in scholarship prize money.  Ayn Rand (1905-1982) was a Russian-American writer and philosopher and is known for developing a philosophical system she named Objectivism. Her three most popular works are - Anthem, Fountainhead, and Atlas Shrugged.    

ARI has held worldwide essay contests based on the above three works for students on Ayn Rand’s fiction for more than thirty years, awarding over $2 million in total prize money!

Ayn Rand Institutes' ATLAS SHRUGGED essay contest is open to school students from anywhere in the world. 

Participation fee: Nil

Choose one of the following topics
1. In his speech about money, Francisco says: “Whenever destroyers appear among men, they start by destroying money, for money is men’s protection and the base of a moral existence. . . . Paper [money] is a check drawn by legal looters upon an account which is not theirs: upon the virtue of the victims. Watch for the day when it bounces, marked: ‘Account overdrawn.’” Explain what Francisco means by this and how it serves the purpose of his speech. Then explain how his statement can be seen as applying to our economic world today.

2. In his radio speech, John Galt names a principle that Rearden and Dagny have struggled to discover for themselves: “The evil of the world is made possible by nothing but the sanction you give it. . . . Do not try to live on your enemies’ terms or to win at a game where they’re setting the rules. . . . One cannot hope to maintain one’s life by accepting bribes to condone one’s destruction.” Explain what Galt means by this and how the issue plays a role in the plot of the novel. Describe an issue or event from current events (whether in your country or in its relations with others) to which you think this principle applies. How might events have unfolded differently if this principle of the sanction of the victim were taken more seriously?

3. The bum in the diner says to Dagny, “It doesn’t take any morality to turn out a ten-ton truck on an assembly line.” In important ways, the events of the novel go on to address this and other claims the bum makes in this scene about the nature of morality. What do they suggest is right about the bum’s conception of morality? What do they suggest is wrong about it? How, in particular, does Rearden start from the bum’s point of view and develop a new view over the course of the story?

Key Dates to Remember

Entry Deadline: 06 November, 2023
Grading Phase 1: November, 2023
Grading Phase 1: December, 2023
Grading Phase 1: January, 2024
Winners announced: February, 2023

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