Hopeful vs Hopeless

The fact that the novel begins with the question “Who is John Galt?” sets up the novel with the attitude of hopelessness. Those who are hopeful and those who are hopeless categorize the characters in this novel. Eddie Willers, the first character we are introduced to, is a hopeful man. He walks around New York seeing all the businesses that are failing, but he thinks about how he can make his own better. He believes that Taggart Transcontinental has the ability to fix the railroads that need to be helped. The other character that is hopeful is Dagny Taggart. Ms. Taggart is a very efficient woman. She saw that the Rio Norte Line needed fixing and she took the matter into her own hands. In her mind it does not matter that she is a woman, but if she has any ounce of power she will use it to better her company. Her brother, James Taggart, on the other hand, is less hopeful in his company. He sees his competition and feels like he should stay away from it although he knows that the Rio Norte line does need to be fixed. There is a dispute between him and his sister because they both know the line must be fixed but they both have different views on how to fix it. She took action and ordered Rearden Metal for the railroad track where as he waited thirteen months to get steel from Ellis Wyatt that has still not arrived. Mr. Taggart does not want to get steel from Rearden because he wants to give smaller companies, like Wyatt’s, a chance to turn into something bigger instead of feeding a monopoly. Ms. Taggart is hopeful that all will work because she says that she will take full responsibility for the company’s actions.