Philosophy - Who needs it Part 1

Philosophy - Who needs it.

by Ayn Rand.

Introduction

Ayn Rand was not only a novelist and philosopher; she was also a salesman of philosophy-the greatest salesman philosophy has ever had.

Who else could write a Romantic best seller such as Atlas Shrugged Atlas Shrugged-in which the heroes and the villains are differentiated fundamentally by their metaphysics; in which the wrong epistemology is shown to lead to train wrecks, furnace breakouts, and s.e.xual impotence; in which the right ethics is shown to be the indispensable means to the rebuilding of New York City and of man's soul? Who else could write a book called Philosophy: Who Needs It Philosophy: Who Needs It-and have an answer to offer?

Ayn Rand's power to sell philosophy is a consequence of her particular philosophy, Objectivism.

". . . I am not primarily primarily an advocate of capitalism, but of egoism," she wrote a decade ago; "and I am not an advocate of capitalism, but of egoism," she wrote a decade ago; "and I am not primarily primarily an advocate of egoism, but of reason. If one recognizes the supremacy of reason and applies it consistently, all the rest follows. This-the supremacy of reason-was, is and will be the primary concern of my work, and the essence of Objectivism." ( an advocate of egoism, but of reason. If one recognizes the supremacy of reason and applies it consistently, all the rest follows. This-the supremacy of reason-was, is and will be the primary concern of my work, and the essence of Objectivism." (The Objectivist, September 1971.) September 1971.) Reason, according to Objectivism, is not merely a distinguis.h.i.+ng attribute of man; it is his fundamental attribute-his basic means of survival. Therefore, whatever reason requires in order to function is a necessity of human life.

Reason functions by integrating perceptual data into concepts. This process, Ayn Rand holds, ultimately requires the widest integrations-those which give man knowledge of the universe in which he acts, of his means of knowledge, and of his proper values.

Man, therefore, needs metaphysics, epistemology and ethics; i.e., he needs philosophy. He needs it by his essential nature and for a practical purpose: in order to be able to think, to act, to live.

In today's world, this view of the role of philosophy is unique-just as, in today's neo-mystic culture, Objectivism's advocacy of reason is all but unique.

To Ayn Rand, philosophy is not a senseless parade of abstractions created to fill out the ritual at c.o.c.ktail parties or in Sunday morning services. It is not a ponderous Continental wail of futility resonating with Oriental overtones. It is not a chess game divorced from reality designed by British professors for otherwise unemployable colleagues. To Ayn Rand, philosophy is the fundamental factor in human life; it is the basic force that shapes the mind and character of men and the destiny of nations. It shapes them for good or for evil, depending on the kind of philosophy men accept.

A man's choice, according to Ayn Rand, is not whether to have a philosophy, but only which philosophy to have. His choice is whether his philosophy will be conscious, explicit, logical, and therefore practical-or random, unidentified, contradictory, and therefore lethal.

In these essays, Ayn Rand explains some of the steps necessary to achieve a conscious, rational philosophy. She teaches the reader how to identify, and then evaluate, the hidden premises at work in his own soul or nation. She makes clear the mechanism by which philosophy rules men and societies, the forms that abstract theory takes in daily life, and the profound existential consequences that flow from even the most abstruse ideas, ideas which may seem at first glance to be of merely academic concern. She shows that, when an idea is rational, its consequence, ultimately, is the preservation of man's life; and that when an idea is irrational, its consequence is the opposite.

Contrary to the injunctions issued to men for millennia, Ayn Rand did not equate objectivity with "disinterest"; she was interested interested in philosophy, in the Objectivist sense of "self-interest"; she wanted-selfishly, for the sake of her own actions and life-to know which ideas are right. If man needs philosophy, she held, he needs one that is in philosophy, in the Objectivist sense of "self-interest"; she wanted-selfishly, for the sake of her own actions and life-to know which ideas are right. If man needs philosophy, she held, he needs one that is true, true, i.e., in accordance with reality. i.e., in accordance with reality.

Philosophy: Who Needs It is the last work planned by Ayn Rand before her death in March of this year. is the last work planned by Ayn Rand before her death in March of this year.

The book was first suggested by a Canadian Objectivist, Walter Huebscher. In the fall of 1981, he wrote to Miss Rand: "In [your articles], you detail dramatically how everyone, through each statement he makes, uses philosophical premises. . . . If [such] articles were published in a single volume, I believe that it would focus direct attention on philosophy's powerful influence, identify the philosophical roots of some of today's most dangerous trends, [and] indicate that it is possible to reverse a cultural trend, that everyone can and should get involved in doing just that."

Miss Rand was pleased with Mr. Huebscher's idea of a collection taken largely from her newsletter, The Ayn Rand Letter, The Ayn Rand Letter, and featuring as its t.i.tle piece one of her favorites among her own articles, "Philosophy: Who Needs It"-originally a speech given at the United States Military Academy at West Point. In subsequent months-with her publisher at Bobbs-Merrill, Grace Shaw, and with friends and a.s.sociates-she several times discussed her concept of the book. She indicated its content and structure in general terms. She mentioned articles whose inclusion would be mandatory, and others that she regarded as optional. She did not live long enough, however, to determine the final selection of pieces or their sequence. It has fallen to me to make these decisions, guided, wherever possible, by Miss Rand's stated wishes. and featuring as its t.i.tle piece one of her favorites among her own articles, "Philosophy: Who Needs It"-originally a speech given at the United States Military Academy at West Point. In subsequent months-with her publisher at Bobbs-Merrill, Grace Shaw, and with friends and a.s.sociates-she several times discussed her concept of the book. She indicated its content and structure in general terms. She mentioned articles whose inclusion would be mandatory, and others that she regarded as optional. She did not live long enough, however, to determine the final selection of pieces or their sequence. It has fallen to me to make these decisions, guided, wherever possible, by Miss Rand's stated wishes.

Following her policy in other anthologies, I have placed the more theoretical articles in the first part of the book, and followed them by more concrete applications and/or essentially critical articles. None of the pieces has been published before in book form.

The t.i.tle article is followed by one written originally as its companion piece. Next comes a group dealing with the Objectivist philosophy. The first of these (Chapter 3), her a.n.a.lysis of what is or is not open to change, represents Ayn Rand's fullest discussion in print of one element of the Objectivist metaphysics-the primacy of existence. The following discussions of the anti-conceptual mentality (Chapters 4 and 5) are a demonstration, in reverse, of one element of the Objectivist epistemology: they show what happens to men who never fully develop the human human form of knowledge-concepts. The open letter to Boris Spa.s.sky (Chapter 6), the Soviet chessmaster, is a tour de force summarizing, in the form of a single startling example, the role in man's life of every branch of philosophy. form of knowledge-concepts. The open letter to Boris Spa.s.sky (Chapter 6), the Soviet chessmaster, is a tour de force summarizing, in the form of a single startling example, the role in man's life of every branch of philosophy.

With one exception, all the articles in this book were written between 1970 and 1975. The exception is "Faith and Force: The Destroyers of the Modern World" (Chapter 7), a speech given initially at Yale University in 1960, a few years after the publication of Atlas Shrugged. Atlas Shrugged. This speech is an excellent, simple introduction to Objectivism and to Ayn Rand's view of today's world. Until now, it has not been easily available. Those unfamiliar with Miss Rand's work might be well advised to begin their reading with this chapter. This speech is an excellent, simple introduction to Objectivism and to Ayn Rand's view of today's world. Until now, it has not been easily available. Those unfamiliar with Miss Rand's work might be well advised to begin their reading with this chapter.

There follows an essentially critical section (Chapters 8-13) dealing with Kant, and with some of his heirs, such as the egalitarian movement and B. F. Skinner.

Miss Rand was frequently asked why there are so few advocates of good ideas in positions of power today. To indicate her answer, at least in part, I have included two political pieces (Chapters 14 and 15); they discuss some current methods used by the government to corrupt our cultural life. These are followed by two pieces (Chapters 16 and 17) relating to another question Ayn Rand was repeatedly asked: What can anyone do about the state of today's world?

I have ended the book as, I think, Miss Rand would have ended it. "Don't Let It Go" presents the American sense of life as the basis of hope for this country's future.

When articles written years apart are published in book form, editorial changes are occasionally necessary. I have enclosed such changes in square brackets. In a few cases, where Miss Rand uses a term that would be unfamiliar to new readers, I have offered a brief definition, also in square brackets. Otherwise, aside from minor copy-editing, the text is exactly as worded (and in some cases later reworded) by Ayn Rand herself. (Please note that square brackets within a quotation are in every case Miss Rand's, and represent her own additions to or comments on the quotation.) Since Miss Rand's death, her a.s.sociates in New York have received a great deal of mail inquiring how one can learn more about her ideas; how one can obtain back issues of her magazines; what current publications, schools, courses now carry on her philosophy; what work is done by the Foundation for the New Intellectual; etc. If you are interested in any of the above, I suggest that you write to: Objectivism PW, P.O. Box 51808, Irvine, California 92619-9930. I regret that, owing to the volume of mail, you will probably not receive a personal reply; but in due course you will receive literature from several sources indicating the direction to pursue if you wish to investigate Ayn Rand's ideas further, or to support them.

Meanwhile, if you are about to read these essays for the first time, I envy you, because of what you still have in store for you. Ayn Rand has changed many people's minds and lives. Perhaps she will change yours, too.

LEONARD PEIKOFF New York City May 1982

1

Philosophy: Who Needs It 1974

(An address given to the graduating cla.s.s of the United States Military Academy at West Point on March 6, 1974.)

Since I am a fiction writer, let us start with a short short story. Suppose that you are an astronaut whose s.p.a.ces.h.i.+p gets out of control and crashes on an unknown planet. When you regain consciousness and find that you are not hurt badly, the first three questions in your mind would be: Where am I? How can I discover it? What should I do?

You see unfamiliar vegetation outside, and there is air to breathe; the sunlight seems paler than you remember it and colder. You turn to look at the sky, but stop. You are struck by a sudden feeling: if you don't look, you won't have to know that you are, perhaps, too far from the earth and no return is possible; so long as you don't know it, you are free to believe what you wish-and you experience a foggy, pleasant, but somehow guilty, kind of hope.

You turn to your instruments: they may be damaged, you don't know how seriously. But you stop, struck by a sudden fear: how can you trust these instruments? How can you be sure that they won't mislead you? How can you know whether they will work in a different world? You turn away from the instruments.

Now you begin to wonder why you have no desire to do anything. It seems so much safer just to wait for something to turn up somehow; it is better, you tell yourself, not to rock the s.p.a.ces.h.i.+p. Far in the distance, you see some sort of living creatures approaching; you don't know whether they are human, but they walk on two feet. They, They, you decide, will tell you what to do. you decide, will tell you what to do.

You are never heard from again.

This is fantasy, you say? You would not act like that and no astronaut ever would? Perhaps not. But this is the way most men live their lives, here, on earth.

Most men spend their days struggling to evade three questions, the answers to which underlie man's every thought, feeling and action, whether he is consciously aware of it or not: Where am I? How do I know it? What should I do?

By the time they are old enough to understand these questions, men believe that they know the answers. Where am I? Say, in New York City. How do I know it? It's self-evident. What should I do? Here, they are not too sure-but the usual answer is: whatever everybody does. The only trouble seems to be that they are not very active, not very confident, not very happy-and they experience, at times, a causeless fear and an undefined guilt, which they cannot explain or get rid of.

They have never discovered the fact that the trouble comes from the three unanswered questions-and that there is only one science that can answer them: philosophy. philosophy.

Philosophy studies the fundamental fundamental nature of existence, of man, and of man's relations.h.i.+p to existence. As against the special sciences, which deal only with particular aspects, philosophy deals with those aspects of the universe which pertain to everything that exists. In the realm of cognition, the special sciences are the trees, but philosophy is the soil which makes the forest possible. nature of existence, of man, and of man's relations.h.i.+p to existence. As against the special sciences, which deal only with particular aspects, philosophy deals with those aspects of the universe which pertain to everything that exists. In the realm of cognition, the special sciences are the trees, but philosophy is the soil which makes the forest possible.

Philosophy would not tell you, for instance, whether you are in New York City or in Zanzibar (though it would give you the means to find out). But here is what it would would tell you: Are you in a universe which is ruled by natural laws and, therefore, is stable, firm, absolute-and knowable? Or are you in an incomprehensible chaos, a realm of inexplicable miracles, an unpredictable, unknowable flux, which your mind is impotent to grasp? Are the things you see around you real-or are they only an illusion? Do they exist independent of any observer-or are they created by the observer? Are they the object or the subject of man's consciousness? Are they tell you: Are you in a universe which is ruled by natural laws and, therefore, is stable, firm, absolute-and knowable? Or are you in an incomprehensible chaos, a realm of inexplicable miracles, an unpredictable, unknowable flux, which your mind is impotent to grasp? Are the things you see around you real-or are they only an illusion? Do they exist independent of any observer-or are they created by the observer? Are they the object or the subject of man's consciousness? Are they what they are what they are-or can they be changed by a mere act of your consciousness, such as a wish?

The nature of your actions-and of your ambition-will be different, according to which set of answers you come to accept. These answers are the province of metaphysics metaphysics-the study of existence as such or, in Aristotle's words, of "being qua being"-the basic branch of philosophy.

No matter what conclusions you reach, you will be confronted by the necessity to answer another, corollary corollary question: How do I know it? Since man is not omniscient or infallible, you have to discover what you can claim as knowledge and how to question: How do I know it? Since man is not omniscient or infallible, you have to discover what you can claim as knowledge and how to prove prove the validity of your conclusions. Does man acquire knowledge by a process of reason-or by sudden revelation from a supernatural power? Is reason a faculty that identifies and integrates the material provided by man's senses-or is it fed by innate ideas, implanted in man's mind before he was born? Is reason competent to perceive reality-or does man possess some other cognitive faculty which is superior to reason? Can man achieve certainty-or is he doomed to perpetual doubt? the validity of your conclusions. Does man acquire knowledge by a process of reason-or by sudden revelation from a supernatural power? Is reason a faculty that identifies and integrates the material provided by man's senses-or is it fed by innate ideas, implanted in man's mind before he was born? Is reason competent to perceive reality-or does man possess some other cognitive faculty which is superior to reason? Can man achieve certainty-or is he doomed to perpetual doubt?

The extent of your self-confidence-and of your success-will be different, according to which set of answers you accept. These answers are the province of epistemology, epistemology, the theory of knowledge, which studies man's means of cognition. the theory of knowledge, which studies man's means of cognition.

These two branches are the theoretical foundation of philosophy. The third branch-ethics-may be regarded as its technology. Ethics does not apply to everything that exists, only to man, but it applies to every aspect of man's life: his character, his actions, his values, his relations.h.i.+p to all of existence. Ethics, or morality, defines a code of values to guide man's choices and actions-the choices and actions that determine the course of his life.

Just as the astronaut in my story did not know what he should do, because he refused to know where he was and how to discover it, so you cannot know what you should do until you know the nature of the universe you deal with, the nature of your means of cognition-and your own nature. Before you come to ethics, you must answer the questions posed by metaphysics and epistemology: Is man a rational being, able to deal with reality-or is he a helplessly blind misfit, a chip buffeted by the universal flux? Are achievement and enjoyment possible to man on earth-or is he doomed to failure and disaster? Depending on the answers, you can proceed to consider the questions posed by ethics: What is good or evil for man-and why? Should man's primary concern be a quest for joy-or an escape from suffering? Should man hold self-fulfillment-or self-destruction-as the goal of his life? Should man pursue his values-or should he place the interests of others above his own? Should man seek happiness-or self-sacrifice?

I do not have to point out the different consequences of these two sets of answers. You can see them everywhere-within you and around you.

The answers given by ethics determine how man should treat other men, and this determines the fourth branch of philosophy: politics, politics, which defines the principles of a proper social system. As an example of philosophy's function, political philosophy will not tell you how much rationed gas you should be given and on which day of the week-it will tell you whether the government has the right to impose any rationing on anything. which defines the principles of a proper social system. As an example of philosophy's function, political philosophy will not tell you how much rationed gas you should be given and on which day of the week-it will tell you whether the government has the right to impose any rationing on anything.

The fifth and last branch of philosophy is esthetics, esthetics, the study of art, which is based on metaphysics, epistemology and ethics. Art deals with the needs-the refueling-of man's consciousness. the study of art, which is based on metaphysics, epistemology and ethics. Art deals with the needs-the refueling-of man's consciousness.

Now some of you might say, as many people do: "Aw, I never think in such abstract terms-I want to deal with concrete, particular, real-life problems-what do I need philosophy for?" My answer is: In order to be able to deal with concrete, particular, real-life problems-i.e., in order to be able to live on earth.

You might claim-as most people do-that you have never been influenced by philosophy. I will ask you to check that claim. Have you ever thought or said the following? "Don't be so sure-n.o.body can be certain of anything." You got that notion from David Hume (and many, many others), even though you might never have heard of him. Or: "This may be good in theory, but it doesn't work in practice." You got that from Plato. Or: "That was a rotten thing to do, but it's only human, n.o.body is perfect in this world." You got it from Augustine. Or: "It may be true for you, but it's not true for me." You got it from William James. Or: "I couldn't help it! n.o.body can help anything he does." You got it from Hegel. Or: "I can't prove it, but I feel feel that it's true." You got it from Kant. Or: "It's logical, but logic has nothing to do with reality." You got it from Kant. Or: "It's evil, because it's selfish." You got it from Kant. Have you heard the modern activists say: "Act first, think afterward"? They got it from John Dewey. that it's true." You got it from Kant. Or: "It's logical, but logic has nothing to do with reality." You got it from Kant. Or: "It's evil, because it's selfish." You got it from Kant. Have you heard the modern activists say: "Act first, think afterward"? They got it from John Dewey.

Some people might answer: "Sure, I've said those things at different times, but I don't have to believe that stuff all all of the time. It may have been true yesterday, but it's not true today." They got it from Hegel. They might say: "Consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds." They got it from a very little mind, Emerson. They might say: "But can't one compromise and borrow different ideas from different philosophies according to the expediency of the moment?" They got it from Richard Nixon-who got it from William James. of the time. It may have been true yesterday, but it's not true today." They got it from Hegel. They might say: "Consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds." They got it from a very little mind, Emerson. They might say: "But can't one compromise and borrow different ideas from different philosophies according to the expediency of the moment?" They got it from Richard Nixon-who got it from William James.

Now ask yourself: if you are not interested in abstract ideas, why do you (and all men) feel compelled to use them? The fact is that abstract ideas are conceptual integrations which subsume an incalculable number of concretes-and that without abstract ideas you would not be able to deal with concrete, particular, real-life problems. You would be in the position of a newborn infant, to whom every object is a unique, unprecedented phenomenon. The difference between his mental state and yours lies in the number of conceptual integrations your mind has performed.

You have no choice about the necessity to integrate your observations, your experiences, your knowledge into abstract ideas, i.e., into principles. Your only choice is whether these principles are true or false, whether they represent your conscious, rational convictions-or a grab-bag of notions s.n.a.t.c.hed at random, whose sources, validity, context and consequences you do not know, notions which, more often than not, you would drop like a hot potato if you knew.

But the principles you accept (consciously or subconsciously) may clash with or contradict one another; they, too, have to be integrated. What integrates them? Philosophy. A philosophic system is an integrated view of existence. As a human being, you have no choice about the fact that you need a philosophy. Your only choice is whether you define your philosophy by a conscious, rational, disciplined process of thought and scrupulously logical deliberation-or let your subconscious acc.u.mulate a junk heap of unwarranted conclusions, false generalizations, undefined contradictions, undigested slogans, unidentified wishes, doubts and fears, thrown together by chance, but integrated by your subconscious into a kind of mongrel philosophy and fused into a single, solid weight: self-doubt, self-doubt, like a ball and chain in the place where your mind's wings should have grown. like a ball and chain in the place where your mind's wings should have grown.

You might say, as many people do, that it is not easy always to act on abstract principles. No, it is not easy. But how much harder is it, to have to act on them without knowing what they are?

Your subconscious is like a computer-more complex a computer than men can build-and its main function is the integration of your ideas. Who programs it? Your conscious mind. If you default, if you don't reach any firm convictions, your subconscious is programmed by chance-and you deliver yourself into the power of ideas you do not know you have accepted. But one way or the other, your computer gives you print-outs, daily and hourly, in the form of emotions emotions-which are lightning-like estimates of the things around you, calculated according to your values. If you programmed your computer by conscious thinking, you know the nature of your values and emotions. If you didn't, you don't.

Many people, particularly today, claim that man cannot live by logic alone, that there's the emotional element of his nature to consider, and that they rely on the guidance of their emotions. Well, so did the astronaut in my story. The joke is on him-and on them: man's values and emotions are determined by his fundamental view of life. The ultimate programmer of his subconscious is philosophy philosophy-the science which, according to the emotionalists, is impotent to affect or penetrate the murky mysteries of their feelings.

The quality of a computer's output is determined by the quality of its input. If your subconscious is programmed by chance, its output will have a corresponding character. You have probably heard the computer operators' eloquent term "gigo"-which means: "Garbage in, garbage out." The same formula applies to the relations.h.i.+p between a man's thinking and his emotions.

A man who is run by emotions is like a man who is run by a computer whose print-outs he cannot read. He does not know whether its programming is true or false, right or wrong, whether it's set to lead him to success or destruction, whether it serves his goals or those of some evil, unknowable power. He is blind on two fronts: blind to the world around him and to his own inner world, unable to grasp reality or his own motives, and he is in chronic terror of both. Emotions are not tools of cognition. The men who are not interested in philosophy need it most urgently: they are most helplessly in its power.

The men who are not interested in philosophy absorb its principles from the cultural atmosphere around them-from schools, colleges, books, magazines, newspapers, movies, television, etc. Who sets the tone of a culture? A small handful of men: the philosophers. Others follow their lead, either by conviction or by default. For some two hundred years, under the influence of Immanuel Kant, the dominant trend of philosophy has been directed to a single goal: the destruction of man's mind, of his confidence in the power of reason. Today, we are seeing the climax of that trend.

When men abandon reason, they find not only that their emotions cannot guide them, but that they can experience no emotions save one: terror. The spread of drug addiction among young people brought up on today's intellectual fas.h.i.+ons, demonstrates the unbearable inner state of men who are deprived of their means of cognition and who seek escape from reality-from the terror of their impotence to deal with existence. Observe these young people's dread of independence and their frantic desire to "belong," to attach themselves to some group, clique or gang. Most of them have never heard of philosophy, but they sense that they need some fundamental answers to questions they dare not ask-and they hope that the tribe will tell them how to live. how to live. They are ready to be taken over by any witch doctor, guru, or dictator. One of the most dangerous things a man can do is to surrender his They are ready to be taken over by any witch doctor, guru, or dictator. One of the most dangerous things a man can do is to surrender his moral moral autonomy to others: like the astronaut in my story, he does not know whether they are human, even though they walk on two feet. autonomy to others: like the astronaut in my story, he does not know whether they are human, even though they walk on two feet.

Now you may ask: If philosophy can be that evil, why should one study it? Particularly, why should one study the philosophical theories which are blatantly false, make no sense, and bear no relation to real life?

My answer is: In self-protection-and in defense of truth, justice, freedom, and any value you ever held or may ever hold.

Not all philosophies are evil, though too many of them are, particularly in modern history. On the other hand, at the root of every civilized achievement, such as science, technology, progress, freedom-at the root of every value we enjoy today, including the birth of this country-you will find the achievement of one man, one man, who lived over two thousand years ago: Aristotle. who lived over two thousand years ago: Aristotle.

If you feel nothing but boredom when reading the virtually unintelligible theories of some some philosophers, you have my deepest sympathy. But if you brush them aside, saying: "Why should I study that stuff when I philosophers, you have my deepest sympathy. But if you brush them aside, saying: "Why should I study that stuff when I know know it's nonsense?"-you are mistaken. It it's nonsense?"-you are mistaken. It is is nonsense, but you nonsense, but you don't don't know it-not so long as you go on accepting all their conclusions, all the vicious catch phrases generated by those philosophers. And not so long as you are unable to know it-not so long as you go on accepting all their conclusions, all the vicious catch phrases generated by those philosophers. And not so long as you are unable to refute refute them. them.

That nonsense deals with the most crucial, the life-or-death issues of man's existence. At the root of every significant philosophic theory, there is a legitimate issue-in the sense that there is an authentic need of man's consciousness, which some theories struggle to clarify and others struggle to obfuscate, to corrupt, to prevent man from ever discovering. The battle of philosophers is a battle for man's mind. If you do not understand their theories, you are vulnerable to the worst among them.

The best way to study philosophy is to approach it as one approaches a detective story: follow every trail, clue and implication, in order to discover who is a murderer and who is a hero. The criterion of detection is two questions: Why? and How? If a given tenet seems to be true-why? If another tenet seems to be false-why? and how is it being put over? You will not find all the answers immediately, but you will acquire an invaluable characteristic: the ability to think in terms of essentials.

Nothing is given to man automatically, neither knowledge, nor self-confidence, nor inner serenity, nor the right way to use his mind. Every value he needs or wants has to be discovered, learned and acquired-even the proper posture of his body. In this context, I want to say that I have always admired the posture of West Point graduates, a posture that projects man in proud, disciplined control of his body. Well, philosophical training gives man the proper intellectual intellectual posture-a proud, disciplined control of his mind. posture-a proud, disciplined control of his mind.

In your own profession, in military science, you know the importance of keeping track of the enemy's weapons, strategy and tactics-and of being prepared to counter them. The same is true in philosophy: you have to understand the enemy's ideas and be prepared to refute them, you have to know his basic arguments and be able to blast them.

In physical warfare, you would not send your men into a b.o.o.by trap: you would make every effort to discover its location. Well, Kant's system is the biggest and most intricate b.o.o.by trap in the history of philosophy-but it's so full of holes that once you grasp its gimmick, you can defuse it without any trouble and walk forward over it in perfect safety. And, once it is defused, the lesser Kantians-the lower ranks of his army, the philosophical sergeants, buck privates, and mercenaries of today-will fall of their own weightlessness, by chain reaction.

There is a special reason why you, the future leaders of the United States Army, need to be philosophically armed today. You are the target of a special attack by the Kantian-Hegelian-collectivist establishment that dominates our cultural inst.i.tutions at present. You are the army of the last semi-free country left on earth, yet you are accused of being a tool of imperialism-and "imperialism" is the name given to the foreign policy of this country, which has never engaged in military conquest and has never profited from the two world wars, which she did not initiate, but entered and won. (It was, incidentally, a foolishly overgenerous policy, which made this country waste her wealth on helping both her allies and her former enemies.) Something called "the military-industrial complex"-which is a myth or worse-is being blamed for all of this country's troubles. b.l.o.o.d.y college hoodlums scream demands that R.O.T.C. units be banned from college campuses. Our defense budget is being attacked, denounced and undercut by people who claim that financial priority should be given to ecological rose gardens and to cla.s.ses in esthetic self-expression for the residents of the slums.

Some of you may be bewildered by this campaign and may be wondering, in good faith, what errors you committed to bring it about. If so, it is urgently important for you to understand the nature of the enemy. You are attacked, not for any errors or flaws, but for your virtues. You are denounced, not for any weaknesses, but for your strength and your competence. You are penalized for being the protectors of the United States. On a lower level of the same issue, a similar kind of campaign is conducted against the police force. Those who seek to destroy this country, seek to disarm it-intellectually and physically. But it is not a mere political issue; politics is not the cause, but the last consequence of philosophical ideas. It is not a communist conspiracy, though some communists may be involved-as maggots cas.h.i.+ng in on a disaster they had no power to originate. The motive of the destroyers is not love for communism, but hatred for America. Why hatred? Because America is the living refutation of a Kantian universe.

Today's mawkish concern with and compa.s.sion for the feeble, the flawed, the suffering, the guilty, is a cover for the profoundly Kantian hatred of the innocent, the strong, the able, the successful, the virtuous, the confident, the happy. A philosophy out to destroy man's mind is necessarily a philosophy of hatred for man, for man's life, and for every human value. Hatred of the good for being the good, is the hallmark of the twentieth century. This This is the enemy you are facing. is the enemy you are facing.

A battle of this kind requires special weapons. It has to be fought with a full understanding of your cause, a full confidence in yourself, and the fullest certainty of the moral moral rightness of both. Only philosophy can provide you with these weapons. rightness of both. Only philosophy can provide you with these weapons.

The a.s.signment I gave myself for tonight is not to sell you on my my philosophy, but on philosophy as such. I have, however, been speaking implicitly of my philosophy in every sentence-since none of us and no statement can escape from philosophical premises. What is my philosophy, but on philosophy as such. I have, however, been speaking implicitly of my philosophy in every sentence-since none of us and no statement can escape from philosophical premises. What is my selfish selfish interest in the matter? I am confident enough to think that if you accept the importance of philosophy and the task of examining it critically, it is interest in the matter? I am confident enough to think that if you accept the importance of philosophy and the task of examining it critically, it is my my philosophy that you will come to accept. Formally, I call it Objectivism, but informally I call it a philosophy for living on earth. You will find an explicit presentation of it in my books, particularly in philosophy that you will come to accept. Formally, I call it Objectivism, but informally I call it a philosophy for living on earth. You will find an explicit presentation of it in my books, particularly in Atlas Shrugged. Atlas Shrugged.

In conclusion, allow me to speak in personal terms. This evening means a great deal to me. I feel deeply honored by the opportunity to address you. I can say-not as a patriotic bromide, but with full knowledge of the necessary metaphysical, epistemological, ethical, political and esthetic roots-that the United States of America is the greatest, the n.o.blest and, in its original founding principles, the only only moral country in the history of the world. There is a kind of quiet radiance a.s.sociated in my mind with the name West Point-because you have preserved the spirit of those original founding principles and you are their symbol. There were contradictions and omissions in those principles, and there may be in yours-but I am speaking of the essentials. There may be individuals in your history who did not live up to your highest standards-as there are in every inst.i.tution-since no inst.i.tution and no social system can guarantee the automatic perfection of all its members; this depends on an individual's free will. I am speaking of your standards. You have preserved three qualities of character which were typical at the time of America's birth, but are virtually nonexistent today: earnestness-dedication-a sense of honor. Honor is self-esteem made visible in action. moral country in the history of the world. There is a kind of quiet radiance a.s.sociated in my mind with the name West Point-because you have preserved the spirit of those original founding principles and you are their symbol. There were contradictions and omissions in those principles, and there may be in yours-but I am speaking of the essentials. There may be individuals in your history who did not live up to your highest standards-as there are in every inst.i.tution-since no inst.i.tution and no social system can guarantee the automatic perfection of all its members; this depends on an individual's free will. I am speaking of your standards. You have preserved three qualities of character which were typical at the time of America's birth, but are virtually nonexistent today: earnestness-dedication-a sense of honor. Honor is self-esteem made visible in action.

You have chosen to risk your lives for the defense of this country. I will not insult you by saying that you are dedicated to selfless service-it is not a virtue in my my morality. In my morality, the defense of one's country means that a man is personally unwilling to live as the conquered slave of any enemy, foreign or domestic. morality. In my morality, the defense of one's country means that a man is personally unwilling to live as the conquered slave of any enemy, foreign or domestic. This This is an enormous virtue. Some of you may not be consciously aware of it. I want to help you to realize it. is an enormous virtue. Some of you may not be consciously aware of it. I want to help you to realize it.

The army of a free country has a great responsibility: the right to use force, but not as an instrument of compulsion and brute conquest-as the armies of other countries have done in their histories-only as an instrument of a free nation's self-defense, which means: the defense of a man's individual rights. The principle of using force only in retaliation against those who initiate its use, is the principle of subordinating might to right. The highest integrity and sense of honor are required for such a task. No other army in the world has achieved it. You have.

West Point has given America a long line of heroes, known and unknown. You, this year's graduates, have a glorious tradition to carry on-which I admire profoundly, not because it is a tradition, but because it is is glorious. glorious.

Since I came from a country guilty of the worst tyranny on earth, I am particularly able to appreciate the meaning, the greatness and the supreme value of that which you are defending. So, in my own name and in the name of many people who think as I do, I want to say, to all the men of West Point, past, present and future: Thank you.

2

Philosophical Detection 1974

My [lecture at West Point was] devoted to a brief presentation of an enormous subject: "Philosophy: Who Needs It." I covered the essentials, but a more detailed discussion of certain points will be helpful to those who wish to study philosophy (particularly today, because philosophy has been abolished by the two currently fas.h.i.+onable schools, Linguistic a.n.a.lysis and Existentialism).

I said that the best way to study philosophy is to approach it as one approaches a detective story. A detective seeks to discover the truth about a crime. A philosophical detective must seek to determine the truth or falsehood of an abstract system and thus discover whether he is dealing with a great achievement or an intellectual crime. A detective knows what to look for, or what clues to regard as significant. A philosophical detective must remember that all human knowledge has a hierarchical structure; he must learn to distinguish the fundamental fundamental from the derivative, and in judging a given philosopher's system, he must look-first and above all else-at its fundamentals. If the foundation does not hold, neither will anything else. from the derivative, and in judging a given philosopher's system, he must look-first and above all else-at its fundamentals. If the foundation does not hold, neither will anything else.