25.1.07

The RAND connection

Was the protagoinist of GURU, Gurubhai, an objectivist?

GURU is the story of a man who dared to follow his dream. He pulled all stops, left no stone unturned to realise his dream. He bulldozed his way to success, throwing aside all consideration for ethics, morals and values as society understands them today. He justifies his means by the cause for greater good. He refuses to live by the norms of society, forming his own value system based on human emotion and mutual respect.

Interesting, that all winners are shown to be rebels. The law does not come in the way of their sucess....along with their sucess comes the succes of millions of other voice-less, making them modern-day robin hoods.
The scene where a man thanks Guru-bahi for making him rich, and pledging his support, just before the public trial, stands out in my memory.

We make the lawmakers that make the law. We break the law and blame the lawmakers for making a dysfunctional law. We blatantly ignore the law-enforcing machinery. We blame the machinery for not enforcing the law.

What is more important - success or ethics?
Is the cause of the collective good greater than the law itself ?
How valid are Rand's ideologies in today's world? Can they change society without corrupting it ?

2 comments:

Unknown said...

What is society but a collection of humans.. a bigger image of ourselves..
If the society and its ethics are bad/wrong so are we..
if an individual's growth is hampered so is that of the society..
So my good and hence the good of the society is most important..
What we preach others would follow and slowly that would become the norm, the ethic..
In case u were talking abt Ayn Rand and 'Objectivism', its more appropriate to call it 'selfishness'..
we are all selfish and we'll go to any extent to justify our actions. Rand's theory always had value, many would say no, but deep inside all of us are selfish..

Jyotsna said...

Thanks Vicky.
THat was very well put. IT is a glorified form of selfishness..that all of us are guilty of.
I am not able to access your profile. I would like to read your blog.