> But I agree that the plot and characters are shallow. The book was designed to showcase her philosophy and it does it well. Which is what I said. And I lose

> But I agree that the plot and characters are shallow. The book was designed to showcase her philosophy and it does it well. Which is what I said. And I lose a bit of respect because her philosophy is terrible, she's basically a sociopath; the book and her philosophy entirely lack empathy. > What I get out of the book is a different look on self-worth and self-sacrifice than all the rest of society gives. Because society doesn't normally promote sociopathy. If you took something good from it and didn't come out admiring the objectivist view, good for you, you're the rare exception, but the fact is nearly everyone I've ever met who likes that book likes it because they like the objectivist view and all think they're the John Gaults of the word. Rand makes them feel good about their complete lack of empathy and this book is an excellent thermometer for me to quickly avoid wasting time getting to know people I'm very likely not going to get along with anyway.