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WHO IS JOHN GALT? 1957–1968
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to Galt’s Gulch, a refuge nestled deep in the mountains of Colorado,
where they re-create a nineteenth-century world. Residents of the valley
are on a fi rst-name basis with each other and attend Chautauqua-type
lectures at night. The former head of Sanders Aircraft is a hog farmer;
a federal court judge supplies the eggs and butter. Rand’s heroes are a
diverse band of “producers,” including industrialists, artists, and scientists,
whom she intended to embody moral truths. These producers
lead moral lives because they do not extract resources from others, but
depend on their own talents and ingenuity to advance. Once gathered
together in the strike, they represent the pure and honest West, set
against the corruption and overweening power of Washington.
Rand made clear that these individualist principles underlay not only
Galt’s Gulch, but industrial corporate capitalism, properly understood.
In books like The Organization Man, White Collar, and The Lonely Crowd
contemporary social scientists bemoaned the large company as a place
of soulless conformity. By contrast, Rand presented corporate capitalism
as the ultimate fi eld for expression of self. She was able to offer this
alternate vision because she focused entirely on heroic individuals like
Taggart and Rearden, who are able to shape great organizations in their
own image.
For those who could plausibly self-identify as the “producers” that
Rand celebrated, the novel was a powerful justifi cation of their livelihood.
Rand’s defense of wealth and merit freed capitalists from both
personal and social guilt simultaneously. A businessman who reprinted
fi ve hundred copies of her speech “Faith and Force” for distribution
at his own expense made this clear in his cover letter: “Dear Friend:
Is success wrong? Is it evil to earn a profi t—as much profi t as you can
make honestly? Why should the morality of the successful person be
criticized because of his success? . . . You may not agree with Miss Rand’s
answers, but I don’t think you will ever forget her basic message.” 6
A potent source of Rand’s appeal was “The Meaning of Money,” a
speech from Atlas Shrugged. “So you think that money is the root of all
evil?” asks dissolute copper magnate Francisco D’Anconia, misquoting
the biblical injunction against love of money. He draws a direct correlation
between money and merit, identifying wealth as the product of virtue,
and concludes, “money is the root of all good.” This message spurred
many corporations to spread the good news, and Rand granted several
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