Summary
The Fountainhead, published in 1943, is Ayn Rand's breakthrough novel that catapulted her to fame and launched her career as a renowned philosopher. It tells the story of the innovative and uncompromising Howard Roark as he battles against societal pressures to conform. The novel explores themes of individualism, integrity, and the conflict between creativity and tradition.
Though it initially received mixed reviews, The Fountainhead went on to become a massive bestseller, selling over 10 million copies worldwide. It established Rand as a major cultural figure and attracted a devoted following for her philosophical ideas. The novel's influence has extended far beyond literature, inspiring architects, entrepreneurs, and political thinkers for decades. In 1949, The Fountainhead was adapted into a film directed by King Vidor and starring Gary Cooper as Howard Roark.
Plot
The novel follows the career of Howard Roark, a brilliant and uncompromising young architect. Roark is expelled from architecture school for refusing to design in historical styles, and struggles to find work due to his modernist approach. He takes a job at a granite quarry, where he meets Dominique Francon. They are attracted to each other, leading to a controversial sexual encounter.
Meanwhile, Roark's former classmate Peter Keating rises quickly in the architecture world by following popular styles and social climbing. Ellsworth Toohey, an architectural critic, launches a smear campaign against Roark. When Roark designs an unconventional building for Hopton Stoddard, Toohey convinces Stoddard to sue Roark for malpractice. Roark loses the case. Dominique marries Keating, believing she cannot have the world she wants where men like Roark are valued.
Newspaper tycoon Gail Wynand becomes interested in Roark's work and hires him to build a home. They become friends, though Wynand is unaware of Roark's past with Dominique, who is now Wynand's wife. Later, Keating asks for Roark's help designing a housing project, which Roark agrees to do anonymously. When the design is altered during construction, Roark dynamites the building to prevent his vision from being compromised.
At his trial, Roark delivers a speech about the value of ego and integrity in creative work. He is found not guilty. Wynand, who defended Roark in his newspapers, ultimately gives in to public pressure to denounce him. Wynand closes his papers and commissions one final skyscraper from Roark. The novel ends with Dominique visiting Roark at the construction site of this new building, having left Wynand to be with him.
Themes
Individualism versus collectivism
Integrity and staying true to one's principles
Innovation versus tradition in architecture and art
The struggle between creators and “second-handers"
The value of ego and selfishness
The relationship between the individual and society
The nature of power and its corruption
Setting
Ayn Rand's novel The Fountainhead is set primarily in New York City during the 1920s and 1930s. The story unfolds against the backdrop of the city's rapidly evolving architectural landscape, with its towering skyscrapers symbolizing human achievement and progress. Rand was inspired by Manhattan's iconic skyline when she first arrived in America, seeing the soaring buildings as emblems of freedom and individualism.
While the precise time frame is not explicitly stated, the novel's events align with the architectural and cultural shifts of the interwar period. The conflict between traditional and modernist approaches to architecture serves as a central theme, reflecting the broader societal tensions of the era. Key locations include architectural firms, construction sites, newspaper offices, and the private residences of the main characters.
These locations provide contrast to the urban environment and allow for the development of crucial relationships and plot points. Throughout the novel, the physical settings serve as more than mere backdrops, often embodying the philosophical ideas and conflicts at the heart of the story.
Characters
Howard Roark: The novel's protagonist and an innovative modernist architect. Roark is an uncompromising individualist who refuses to conform to architectural conventions or public opinion. He struggles to succeed on his own terms while staying true to his artistic vision and principles. Roark embodies Rand's ideal of the heroic individual.
Peter Keating: Roark's former classmate and a foil to his character. Keating is a conformist who achieves conventional success by pandering to others and imitating popular styles. He lacks artistic integrity and true passion for architecture. Keating's life ultimately becomes unfulfilling as he betrays his own talents and desires.
Dominique Francon: A brilliant and beautiful columnist who becomes Roark's lover. Dominique is conflicted between her attraction to Roark's ideals and her belief that the world will destroy great men like him. She initially works to undermine Roark before eventually embracing his philosophy and joining him.
Gail Wynand: A powerful newspaper tycoon who befriends Roark. Wynand rose from poverty to control much of New York's media, but his success came from pandering to public opinion rather than upholding his own ideals. His internal conflict between individualism and his need for power ultimately leads to his downfall.
Ellsworth Toohey: The novel's antagonist, a socialist architecture critic who seeks to destroy individualism and promote collectivism. Toohey uses his influence to manipulate public opinion and undermine great talents like Roark. He represents the antithesis of Roark's individualist philosophy.
Henry Cameron: Roark's mentor and an innovative architect whose career was destroyed by conformist critics. Cameron inspires Roark but serves as a cautionary example of the struggles faced by original thinkers.
Guy Francon: Dominique's father and a successful but creatively bankrupt architect. Francon represents the establishment that Roark rebels against.
Quick facts
The novel was rejected by 12 publishers before finally being accepted by Bobbs-Merrill Company in 1941.
Rand conducted extensive research on architecture to write the book, including working as an unpaid typist for architect Ely Jacques Kahn.
The character of Howard Roark was partially inspired by architect Frank Lloyd Wright, though Rand denied he influenced the character's philosophy.
Rand's working title for the novel was “Second-Hand Lives” before settling on “The Fountainhead."
The book took Rand 7 years to write, from 1935 to 1942.
Initial sales were slow, but the novel eventually became a bestseller through word of mouth.
The 1949 film adaptation starred Gary Cooper as Howard Roark and featured a screenplay written by Rand herself.
By 2023, the novel had sold over 10 million copies worldwide.
Several notable architects have cited the book as an inspiration, including Fred Stitt who dedicated a book to “Howard Roark."
Rand removed quotes from Friedrich Nietzsche that she had originally planned to use to introduce each section of the novel.
About the Author
Ayn Rand was a Russian-American novelist and philosopher who developed a philosophical system called Objectivism. Born in 1905 in Russia, she immigrated to the United States in 1926 and went on to become an influential and controversial figure through her fiction and non-fiction writings. Rand's best-known novels are The Fountainhead (1943) and Atlas Shrugged (1957), which promoted her philosophy of rational self-interest and laissez-faire capitalism.
Rand's philosophy of Objectivism emphasizes reason, individualism, and enlightened self-interest. She advocated for limited government, free-market capitalism, and rejected altruism and religion. While her ideas gained a significant following, they were also widely criticized by academics and other intellectuals. Rand had a major influence on libertarianism and conservatism in the United States, although she rejected those labels for herself.
In addition to her novels, Rand wrote numerous non-fiction works explaining and promoting her philosophy, including The Virtue of Selfishness and Capitalism: The Unknown Ideal. She developed a dedicated group of followers and established the Nathaniel Branden Institute to promote Objectivism. After her death in 1982, organizations like the Ayn Rand Institute have continued to advance her ideas.
