Reconsidering Ayn Rand

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Like many of Rand's admirers, Michael B. Yang was influenced by Rand's writings as a teenager and adopted her philosophy of Objectivism. However, as Yang completed his undergraduate work at The Johns Hopkins University and embarked upon his studies at Harvard Medical School, he discovered a number of inconsistencies in Rand's writings. These problems prompted him to reexamine her philosophy and ultimately led him to discover a different source of truth.

Reconsidering Ayn Rand tells the story of how an ordinary person who once believed in the philosophy of Ayn Rand ultimately came to understand differently. It considers Rand's fiction from a critical point of view exploring the themes of self-esteem, human worth, productive work, and romantic love that permeate much of her writings. Finally, Reconsidering Ayn Rand is a comprehensive analysis of Objectivism. It covers the entire spectrum of Rand's philosophy from reason and reality to morality, government, science, and theology.

Reconsidering Ayn Rand is self-contained. It includes a valuable synopsis of Rand's two major novels and a brief survey of her philosophy. The book accommodates the beginning as well as the seasoned reader of Rand.

With the recent resurgence of interest in her ideas, it becomes clear that Reconsidering Ayn Rand is a vitally important contribution to the growing body of works on the fiction and philosophy of Ayn Rand.

For starters, Yang has understood Objectivism very well indeed. In this book, he gives quotation after quotation from Rand and her followers. He spells out the Objectivist position before he criticizes her and demonstrates her flawed thinking. Over 700 footnote citations and about 100 works cited in the bibliography are evidence of his meticulous effort. Furthermore, Yang consistently begins by presenting an empathetic view of Objectivism, especially in the early chapters, with respect to its beliefs about self-esteem, romantic love, and productive work. Gradually, he reveals the internal contradictions in Rand's views and then shows that Rand could not justify her ideals on the basis of her premises. And it was Rand who challenged readers: "Check your premises."

As for taking an uncritical view of the Bible and failing to account for the manuscript evidence, that accusation fails considering Yang's gargantuan effort to critically discuss Christianity and Objectivism in 367 pages. Furthermore, Yang's primary objective in his book was not the question of manuscript evidence for the Bible. One of his objectives seems to have been to point out the failure of the philosophical empiricism and materialism of Rand and contrast it with Christian revelation. Nevertheless, Yang gives a page-long footnote discussion on page 348 on the subject of manuscript evidence and offers some suggestions for further reading.

As to the subject of science, such as the question of an empirical proof for the existence of God, one would do well to read Yang's chapter on epistemology (Reason and Reality) or his chapter on Science and Christianity; (this last chapter of 55 some pages could easily have stood alone as a monograph on the subject). These chapters marshal the writings of scientists as well as non-Christian philosophers of science like Stephen Hawking, Karl Popper, Thomas Kuhn, Imre Lakotos and others, to demonstrate the logical fallacies that are at the heart of the scientific method and reveal the utter skepticism that results from adopting an empirical philosophy. This leads to the intriguing conclusion: if science can't prove anything at all, it is begging the question to require Christianity to prove its veracity by the method of science. As to the issue of Creation and the question of the speed of light slowing down leading to the illusion of a older universe, a previous reader also seems to have misread Yang. Yang had already demonstrated that one problem with the scientific method was that an infinite number of hypotheses can "fit" the finite number of empirical, observed "facts". Although the belief in divine creation does not require that one knows for certain that the speed of light is slowing down; nevertheless, the slowing of the speed of light, as documented in a standard college physics textbook, supports one hypothesis, namely that the universe is much younger than we have been told it is. By the same token, it contradicts the theory of evolution and the idea of an ancient universe. Yang is merely taking one empirical finding of physics and using it against those who would utilize science to argue against the Christian belief in creation. He did not assert that the slowing of the speed of light is a certainty or that it was the basis of his belief in creation. How could he? He denies, along with reputable philosophers of science, that science can produce truth.

Rand's literary abilities were considerable, but her philosophy had numerous flaws, which unfortunately, many of her admirers have ignored. This excellent book by a former Rand admirer has shown us where the problems lie and discussed them honestly and thoughtfully. Moreover, this work takes readers beyond Rand's writings and challenges them to consider some broader philosophical issues. It is well worth the time and the money.

I have to say honestly, however, that this book was a disappointment. I wish I had spent my money on something else.

Although Yang apparently did read Rand's books as a young teenager, this book left me suspecting he never really "got" Rand's books. Perhaps he read them at too young an age, or perhaps he just wasn't up to their challenge, but in any case, Yang writes this book from the perspective of a committed, uncritical Christian who, despite all his attempts to be (or seem) fair and careful, wants nothing but to pick Objectivism apart (if he can manage to). In short, he has written a book about Objectivism that fundamentally lacks objectivity.

As Yang reads the Bible now, he basically accepts everything it is *conventionally believed* to say, with little scrutiny - notwithstanding the Bible's own textual problems and massive internal contradictions. Thus, Yang does not bring to Christianity / the Bible a thousandth of the carefulness and intellectual honesty he tries to appear to bring to Objectivism. I must stress "tries to appear to bring", with sadness, because Yang's arguments against Objectivism are generally flawed and desperate, often amounting to sophistry. At several points in the book, Yang even tries to suggest there is no essential difference between existence and non-existence. Such a man is not to be taken seriously, and again, after reading the book, I wished I had not given it my hard-earned dollars and reading time. I felt (intellectually) cheated / abused / disgusted by this book, and I'm writing to warn others.

Writing a book that juxtaposes Objectivism and Christianity - in a way that would bring out each one's good points, as an antidote to the other's undeniable bad points - is a great idea, and I feel sad that this book fails so badly.