2019 Year 12 IB Extended Essays

Ayn Rand’s Objectivism and John Rawls’ Theory of Justice

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opinions or perceptions. The identity of an object will remain neutral and universal

despite any physical, mental or linguistic interaction we may have with it. Rand infers

that intellectuals, such as John Rawls, have negated their responsibility to imply

rationalism and are instead obsessed with abstract concepts, for example altruism.

Rand states that humans must use their ability to reason to survive in this reality and

consequently, it becomes our duty to live to the best of our ability. Our duty serves as a

justification for why selfishness is so important in Objectivism. 5 Moral agents should

act in their self-interest to fulfil their duty to live to the best of their abilities through

Ethical Egoism. 6 Ethical Egoism declares that moral agents should only act in self-

interest and states that selfishness is a virtue. Consequently, the pursuit of rational self-

interest is the only moral righteous thing and the only way to achieve this is through

laissez-faire capitalism a tenet of Neo-liberalism. 7 Rand argues that there cannot be any

acts of physical aggression as it is the only thing that may inhibit someone from acting

in their own self-interest. Rands disdain for aggression led to the principle of individual

rights, which she defines as:

Man—every man—is an end in himself, not the means to the ends of others. He must exist for his own sake, neither sacrificing himself to others nor sacrificing others to himself. The pursuit of his own rational self-interest and of his own happiness is the highest moral purpose of his life. 8

5 Biddle, C., 2014. What is Objectivism?. [Online] 6 Ayn Rand Organisation, 2018. Ayn Rand. [Online] 7 Schwartz, P., 2013. In Praise of Neo-Liberalism. [Online] 8 Rand, A., 1957. Atlas Shrugged. 1st Edition ed. New York City: Random House.

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