Eris v. Atlas: The Throwdown!
Ooooh, I can't not put this up: So wonderful! An excellent fellow named JMR Higgs (and points to you, sir, for the spiffy three-letter first name…very nice in the Age Of Acronyms) has written a comprehensive side-by-side of two of my favorite books to talk about*: The Illuminatus! Trilogy and Atlas Shrugged.
It's a fun, dead-on accurate and really thought-provoking comparison. A short sample (with some links added by me, for extra surfing fun - and sorry if the formatting doesn't work quite right here):
Illuminatus!
Atlas Shrugged
Superficially a sci-fi tinged mystery novel, but really the philosophy of Discordianism in fictional form.
Superficially a sci-fi tinged mystery novel, but really the philosophy of Objectivism in fictional form.
Views the world through the metaphor of the Greek Goddess Eris.
Views the world through the metaphor of the Greek Titan Atlas.
Has been known to turn previously sane readers into paranoid schizophrenics.
Has been known to turn previously sane readers into sociopaths.
Portrays hierarchical systems abstracted to the point of absurdity, although some readers find that absurdity plausible.
Portrays individual liberty abstracted to the point of absurdity, although some readers find that absurdity plausible.
Written by a sane man who believed he was insane.
Written by an insane woman who believed she was sane.
Portrays powerful men as utterly deluded about their influence on world history.
Portrays powerful men as utterly pivotal due to their influence on world history.
Characters who lack a sense of empathy and connection find sex devoid of meaning.
Characters who lack a sense of self-interest and purpose find sex devoid of meaning.
Author never makes things simple for his readers.
Author never makes things difficult for her readers.
Has the ability to make those who haven’t read it bemused.
Has the ability to make those who haven’t read it extremely angry.
Completely unfilmable.
Completely unfilmable (see the 2011 film Atlas Shrugged: Part 1 for more details)
…So if you're surfing today, definitely go check that one out. Made my morning.
(And just for fun/context…I was a rabid Discordian in my youth; in fact the nickname "Puredoxyk" is a derivation of the badge of office I used during my holding-high-masses-in-donut-shops days. I own a legitimately stolen copy of the Principia and my people-who've-known-me-forever nickname is "Kallisti". RAW was before my time, but I'm pretty sure I've read everything he's ever written, and enjoyed well over 85% of it - stellar guy.
I'm also a properly trained philosophical thinker and therefore, if I had a time machine, it isn't Hitler I'd go back and kill: It's Rand. What that woman did to logic ought to be in the same category as what Catholic priests do to unlucky alter boys, and she did it to millions of people. Ew and ew.
So yeah, this is like an Epic Battle of Good And Evil IMO. ::huge grin::)
*That is, one when I'm sober and happy, and the other when I'm angry and drunk.
Originally published at *Transcendental *Logic. You can comment here or there.