Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged- Eugene's Response

"He saw an evening when he sat slumped across his desk in the office. It was late and his staff had left; so he could lie there alone., unwitnessed. He was tired. It was as if he had run a race against his own body, and all the exhaustion of years, which he had refused to acknowledge, had caught him at once and flattened him against the desk top. He felt nothing, except the desire not to move. He did not have the strength to feel, not even to suffer. He had burned everything there was to burn within him; he had scattered so many sparks to start so many things, and he wondered whether someone could give him now the spark he needed, now when he felt unable ever to rise again. He asked himself who had started him and kept him going. Then he raised his head. Slowly, with the greatest effort of his life, he made his body rise until he was able to sit upright with only one hand pressed to the desk and a trembling arm to support him. He never asked that question again."-Rand 36

This single passage contributes greatly to the message of the book as well as the development of the character of Hank Rearden. Those of you who are familiar with Rand's works of literature are most likely knowledgeable of her philosophy of objectivism. For those of you who are not, it is based on the principle that beings exist in contact with reality by perceiving it, and proper morals include the persuing of ones individual joy and not living off others. An objectivist view: "If something I do contributes to your well being, so be it. But I do not do it for your benefit. I do it for mine and mine alone." This particular passage is centered mainly around the issue of an individual acting alone in order to perform an act. In this case it is Rearden's act of lifting himself off a desk, and furthermore, acting as an individual to exist. Rand describes Rearden's exhaustion as being the result of years of ignored fatigue. She goes on to say Rearden wonders if anyone else could give him the impetus to sit up and revitalize himself. At this, Rearden gathers all his strength and picks himself up from the table. This act of overcoming a moment of extreme weakness marks a change in Rearden's past that has greatly affected his character in the present. He acted alone in order overcome this moment and further asserted himself as an individual: one who does not need the help of another to help one continue. We see in the last line of this passage that he decided at that moment, to move on from that question and never pose it to himself again. He answered it, and never needed to think of it again as a moment of weakness.

I think this passage greatly contributes to the work as a whole. It's assertion of the importance of an individual spirit is extremely important to the message of the novel as a whole. Beyond that, it is a passage that is beautifully descriptive of Hank Rearden. The imagery used in the passage "he had scattered so many sparks to start so many things" is beautiful. The author's choice of diction is also interesting. Her choice of the word "spark" to describe Rearden's various acts instead of the more popular "scattering of seeds." "Spark" was probably used to reference the millions of sparks at Rearden's metal plants. As stated before, it also gives the reader a brief insight into Rearden's past, which allows one to see how he became who he is in the present.