Ayn Rand (1905-1982) was a Russian-American writer and philosopher known for her novels “The Fountainhead” and “Atlas Shrugged,” which promote her philosophy of Objectivism. Objectivism emphasizes rational self-interest, individual rights, and laissez-faire capitalism. Rand’s work advocates for the pursuit of personal happiness and integrity against collectivism. Her ideas have influenced libertarian and conservative thought but have also faced criticism for promoting selfishness and rejecting altruism.

Top 10 Quotes by Ayn Rand

1. “The question isn’t who is going to let me; it’s who is going to stop me.”
— Ayn Rand

2. “My happiness is not the means to any end. It is the end. It is its own goal. It is its own purpose.”
— Ayn Rand

3. “Contradictions do not exist. Whenever you think that you are facing a contradiction, check your premises. You will find that one of them is wrong.”
— Ayn Rand

4. “The man who refuses to judge, who neither agrees nor disagrees, who declares that there are no absolutes and believes that he escapes responsibility, is the man responsible for all the blood that is now spilled in the world.”
— Ayn Rand

5. “If you saw Atlas, the giant who holds the world on his shoulders, if you saw that he stood, blood running down his chest, his knees buckling, his arms trembling but still trying to hold the world aloft with the last of his strength, and the greater his effort the heavier the world bore down upon his shoulders – What would you tell him? To shrug.”
— Ayn Rand

6. “The man who does not value himself, cannot value anything or anyone.”
— Ayn Rand

7. “Can’t you ever do things without reason, just like everybody else?”
— Ayn Rand

8. “But a desire to choose the hardest might be a confession of weakness in itself.”
— Ayn Rand

9. “Every form of happiness is private.”
— Ayn Rand

10. “I swear by my life and my love of it that I will never live for the sake of another man, nor ask another man to live for mine.”
— Ayn Rand