Conformity In The Fountainhead

1) Those with power attempt to silence individuals similar to Roark. "And you'll set out from your house with this drawing, to have it erected, because you won't have any doubt that it will be erected by the first man to see it. But you won't get very far from your house. Because you'll be stopped at the door ... he'll say that he's very sorry, only the commission has just been given to Guy Francon." (65) Shortly after just cracking open "The Fountainhead" by Ayn Rand I was able to see Roark as a bold non-conformist who believes in the purity of his work over a check. Even after being threatened with a seemingly inevitable future, Roark gladly accepts. This "Pure" label doesn't stick with him, though. As the novel continues I start to view Roark as somewhat a self-centered dick. "Roark got up and walked to the bench, the brown envelope in hand. He took out of the envelope ten

""We're both fired," said Austen Heller, winking to Roark." (127) Individuality triumphs here and Rand continues to show this throughout the novel. Nearing the exact opposite of this theme is the idea of conformity, which is also prevalent. Keating demonstrates this more often than not and we can clearly see the consequences of such actions.""All right, Dominique. Yes," he said at last. She inclined her head gravely in acquiescence."(370) Keating is willing to do anything to have his name known and goes along doing what he thinks he is "suppose" to do. We can see this leaves Keating consistently worried and unhappy, destroying him. I genuinely enjoyed Rand's voice. That in itself went hand in hand in the themes of the novel. Rand often wrote straight to the point sentences which compare with the black and white symbolism given to her characters. Nearly everyone's "antagonist" or "protagonist" views are explicitly stated and this vividly helps Rand convey her messages of individualism and