Atlas Shrugged Essay Contest

Any Ayn Rand fans out there? If so, you might want to enter the  Atlas Shrugged essay contest. But act quickly because the deadline is Thursday, September 17, 2009 (that’s three days from now). I know it’s soon, but I just found out about it myself.

What do you do? Well, first, read the book, I would imagine. Then,  select one of the following essay topics:

1. Hank Rearden does not apply the same philosophy to his personal life that he applies to his business. In what way does this contradiction harm him psychologically and practically? What is the central error that he makes? How does correcting his error improve his life?

2. In Atlas Shrugged, the heroes want to “make” money while the villains want, on the surface at least, to “have” money. What is the difference between these two views of money? Explain your answer by reference to actual events in the novel.

3. Choose one of the following pairs, and compare and contrast each character’s approach to life and basic motivation:

a. Hank Rearden and Francisco d’Anconia

b. Dagny Taggart and Lillian Rearden

c. Eddie Willers and James Taggart

Basic Rules:

• Open to 12th grade students or those students enrolled in college/university.
• One entry per person.
• Essays have to be between 800 and 1,600 words.
• Essays must be postmarked by 11:59 Pacific Time on September 17th. (technically, that’s 2:59  a.m. on Friday, September 18, 2009 Eastern Standard Time, but don’t wait until the last minute)
• Don’t plagiarize and yes, they will check.
• They’ll notify winners by November 27, 2009.

Prizes:

First Prize: $10,000

3 Second Prizes: $2,000

5 Third Prizes: $1,000

20 Finalists: $100

20 Semifinalists: $50

See the website for complete rules and for submission information.

Good luck!