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More oxford books @ www.OxfordeBook.comFore more urdu books visit www.4Urdu.com32THE EDUCATION OF AYN RAND, 1905–1943Rand’s sympathetic portrait of Andrei is striking, particularly whencontrasted to her later villains. For all Rand’s hatred of Communism,Andrei is one of her most fully realized and compelling characters.Ruthless in pursuit of his ideals, he has the strength and wisdom to recognizethe corruption inherent in the Communist system. In one of thebook’s most gripping scenes, Andrei raids Leo’s apartment and discovershis connection to Kira. When Kira confesses that money was a primarymotivation for her affair with him, Andrei is devastated. She isunapologetic: “If you taught us that our life is nothing before that of theState—well then, are you really suffering?” Stung by her words, Andreibegins to understand the consequences of his ideals in action. He is furtherdisillusioned when his superiors prosecute Leo for speculation yethush up the involvement of several Communist Party members in thescheme. At his next Party Club meeting Andrei denounces the Party anddefends individualism. Soon afterward he commits suicide, an act Randframes as the final, noble decision of a man who recognizes the evil ofthe system he has served yet refuses to let it poison his soul. 50The novel ends on an even bleaker note. Kira has saved Leo’s life butnot his spirit. Denied gainful employment, he turns to crime and thenabandons Kira for a wealthy older woman. Kira concludes, “It wasI against a hundred and fifty million people. I lost.” At the end of thestory Kira is shot while attempting to cross the Siberian border to freedom.Rand paints her death in dramatic detail: “She lay on the edge ofa hill and looked down at the sky. One hand, white and still, hung overthe edge, and little red drops rolled slowly in the snow, down the slope.”Through all the romantic intrigue Rand’s didactic message is clear:Communism is a cruel system that crushes the virtuous and rewardsthe corrupt. 51We the Living was Rand’s first attempt to link her idée fixe of individualismto larger social and political problems. It exhibits much of herprevious contempt for the masses, but its overall theme has a gravityand relevance missing from her earlier work. In her notes for the novelshe used the word “collectivism” for the first time; her book would demonstrate“its spirit, influence, ramifications,” she jotted in a brief aside.Rand’s use of the concept demonstrated her new familiarity with contemporaryAmerican language. As the country sank deeper into depressionduring the mid-1930s there was much discussion of collective solutions