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A ROUND UNIVERSE 159
long gestation, Atlas Shrugged caught Rand once more in the transition
from one mode of thinking to another. The Fountainhead was marked
by Rand’s fi rst encounter with American political life. Atlas Shrugged
was formed in a different crucible, the clash between fi ction and philosophy,
the romantic and the rational. Rand drained herself to fi nish
the book, and when it was over she would never write fi ction again. 58
During the two years she struggled to write Galt’s speech, Rand’s pronounced
nervous tension wreaked havoc on those closest to her. The
emotional center of Nathan’s, Barbara’s, and Frank’s lives, she set the
mood for all. She was irritable, angry, and tense. Nathan’s attentions
did little to soothe her. No matter how welcome, he was a distraction
to her writing. When he let her down, the price seemed too much to
pay. Rand fl ayed him in private for his inattention, while praising him
extravagantly to others. She erupted at Frank for small transgressions,
sometimes drawing Nathan into their arguments. She was also infuriated
by Barbara’s persistent anxiety attacks and her accompanying pleas
for help.
In frustration, Rand developed a new theory of “emotionalism” to
explain Barbara’s behavior. Like the idea of social metaphysics, emotionalism
was a psychological rendering of the ideals conveyed in Rand’s
fi ction. Emotionalists were those who, contrary to Objectivist teaching,
allowed their emotions, rather than their rationality, to guide them
through the world. Rand speculated that emotional repression might
be one source of emotionalism; that is, repression might eviscerate the
rational faculty altogether. By not acknowledging emotions, the emotionalist
was subject to their sway. Certainly this theory did provide
some insight into Barbara’s suffering. However, in Rand’s and Nathan’s
hands, the idea of emotionalism was not a tool for understanding, but
rathera method of judgment. Neither suggested that Barbara’s emotional
repression came from her acceptance of the “rational” affair between her
husband and her closest friend.
Rand’s new interest in psychological ideas refl ected Nathan’s infl uence.
He was now studying for a master’s degree in psychology and
continued to expand Objectivism into new areas, with Rand following
suit. Emotionalism led Rand to further musings on human psychology,
captured under the terms “sub basement” and “superstructure,” her
words for the subconscious and conscious mind. The opposite of an
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