Objectivism: The Philosophy of Ayn Rand — Marking 30 Years

Last year marked the thirtieth anniversary of the publication of Leonard Peikoff’s landmark book Objectivism: The Philosophy of Ayn Rand. To celebrate this milestone of the Objectivist movement, the Ayn Rand Institute’s annual conference featured talks and panels on the book’s impact on three prominent Objectivists — Yaron Brook, Tara Smith and John Allison. The presentations are now available on YouTube.

The first talk, the conference’s keynote lecture, was given by Ayn Rand Institute board chairman Yaron Brook:

Topics covered in Brook’s lecture include:

• Leonard Peikoff’s achievement in Objectivism: The Philosophy of Ayn Rand;
• The impact of Peikoff’s other work on Brook’s intellectual development;
• The impact of OPAR on younger generations;
• The principles of Objectivism that were first put in print in OPAR;
• The qualities in Leonard Peikoff that led him to appreciate Ayn Rand’s achievement.

The conference closed with a panel discussion of OPAR that featured Brook, philosophy professor and ARI board member Tara Smith, and ARI board member John Allison:

The panelists shared many insights and anecdotes, including:

• The importance of OPAR to the development of the Objectivist movement;
• The impact of OPAR on Allison’s business and the BB&T academic programs;
• Several engaging anecdotes about the panelists’ time as students and friends of Leonard Peikoff;
• Advice for effectively studying OPAR.

You can watch both Yaron Brook’s keynote address and the panel discussion on YouTube now.

A special thirtieth anniversary hardcover printing of Objectivism: The Philosophy of Ayn Rand by Leonard Peikoff is now available from the Ayn Rand Institute eStore. Published in 1991, this book presents Rand’s entire philosophy — metaphysics, epistemology, ethics, politics and esthetics — in essentialized and systematic form. Tap here to purchase.