Itamar FeldmanUnderstanding Objectivism is a long and demanding process. In their OCON 2024 talk, Don Watkins and Aaron Fried offered advice on how to accelerate it.
Both shared tips and strategies based on their own learning journeys. Among other points, they explained the value of re-reading Rand’s novels, of thinking on paper to better understand a principle, and of studying ideas that are opposed to Rand’s.
One major recommendation Watkins gave may surprise you: read Rand as you would listen to podcasts or watch YouTube videos. There is a lot of value, he argued, in the kind of familiarity with Rand’s works that allows you to know where to review her reasoning on an issue when you want to think more deeply about it.
But casual familiarity with Rand isn’t enough. Watkins and Fried both argue that you also need systematic study, aided by feedback from experts. To make this value available to more people, ARI has launched a new educational product that allows you to take courses on your own time and get feedback from our faculty on the assignments you submit. It is designed for busy professionals who don’t have the time to join a live course.
In the Q&A Watkins and Fried address topics such as
- How much time it takes to complete the new courses;
- How the new courses differ from past courses by Leonard Peikoff;
- How to concretize Objectivist ideas;
- How to balance breadth and depth of study;
- How to deal with constructive criticism.
To learn more about this product and hear more of Watkins and Fried’s advice on understanding Objectivism, watch the full lecture:
Ibis Slade
Ziemowit Gowin
