The Desire of Man (Rachael Marks)

In my last post I ranted about my hatred for the fact that Dagny was so romanticized, this weeks reading displayed her in a more sexualized manner. Although I did not love her romantic aspects, I believe that her sexual aspects are intriguing. Ayn Rand did not have to use stories of the past to force us to believe that Dagny was a sexual object, she instead shows us [the readers] that she is. The reality of Dagny's situation is that she is incapable of being seen as another businessman. This acknowledgment is one that is so important, it would make almost every main character unrealistic if it were not addressed. No matter how much women fight for their rights, there never seems to be a sense of equality. This is the world that Dagny lives in. Even the men who respect her the most cannot help but think of what they would love to do to her. Throughout her life she has supplied endless amounts of shock to her peers. She is a woman in a man's world (as cliche as that sounds). The fact that she is a woman and a "subject of desire" causes her co-workers to treat her differently, whether they want to or not. The fact that Ayn Rand has made this, amongst many other things, clear, seems to be a reminder to the readers to remember who Dagny is. Dagny is not some female character who can avoid objectification, she struggles with the constant reminder that she is different. As terrible as that as, to have not incorporated this quality would be poor writing. I love this book, despite its ability to be extremely one-sided. Of all of the opinions that Ayn Rand expressed in this book, I believe that this is her most realistic. The other ones are mainly proclaimed by making those who fight them look stupid. Sexual discrimination is something that Ayn Rand does not have to puppeteer in order to bring it out in her novel. I believe that says a lot about its place in our own lives.