Essays on Ayn Rand's "We the Living" (Hardcover, 2nd Edition)

This is the second edition of the study of Ayn Rand's first novel, which was published in 1936--ten years after she left Soviet Russia, and during America's Red Decade. Essays deal with historical, literary and philosophical themes. Essays on the history of We the Living cover: the drafts of the novel; the historical accuracy of its setting and the extent to which the novel is autobiographical; and, Rand's struggles with a hostile culture first to publish We the Living, and then to adapt it. Essays providing literary analyses include a comparison of We the Living and the fiction of Victor Hugo (Rand's favorite writer). Also covered are We the Living's plot, theme, characterization and style--what Rand, in her writings on literary aesthetics, considered the four essential attributes of a novel. The theme of We the Living is the individual against the state, and the sanctity of human life. These issues are dealt with in detail, especially in the essays which focus on philosophical topics. A number of essays in this collection make extensive use of previously unpublished material from the Ayn Rand Archives.