Customer Reviews

We the Living

5 star:		(67)
4 star:		(21)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

There are a lot of people who dislike Ayn Rand. Whether for the rather didactic and lengthy sermons that populate most of the plots of her novels, or her own theories which tend to be underdeveloped and difficult to understand, she is not the most popular author or person in the philosophical realm. We the Living, however, is a book that one must read in order to change the perception of Rand doing what she does best: writing fiction.

The novel is a harsh look at communism in the post-Red revolution of Russia, following three people: Kira, a young, idealistic, woman who bourgeois family was left poverty-stricken following the revolt; Leo, an indifferent young man haunted by the Communists due his late father's war glory; and Andrei, a Communist questioning his own beliefs in the system he has risen up in so quickly. Despite the fact that this novel is set in a far-away time and place to most of its readers, it is a book which I felt an extremely strong connection with. Everybody knows a Leo: flippant, handsome, could get any girl he wants -- but he has serious character flaws, and tends to be abusive of Kira's love for him. And Kira, the novel's protagonist, is very similar to any youth of today: she does not understand the ideals of the Communist party, but she does know what she believes and is wholeheartedly committed to fulfilling the promise she had at birth.

The entire novel is beautifully written in moving prose that reflects both the harsh conditions for the people of Russia and the emotions felt between Kira, Andrei, Leo, and others as they attempt to make life better for themselves in a regime that denies them anything good without punishment. The climax of the novel is breathtaking -- by the time the final words have been read, the reader is totally attached to the characters.

As with any other great novel of its time, We the Living not only characterizes the time period it is based in, but its characters live on as people of today's world, in today's capitalistic society. It questions the principles of freedom and what people will do for that freedom. This is Rand's greatest work: the philosophy is subtle, with more emphasis on the plot and the characters, but is there. Whatever you may think of Ayn Rand, you must read this novel -- it is a moving portrait of human life.

Everyone is affected by political culture. Every level of regulation, from anarchy to fascist dictatorships, is comparatively some amount of government. Ayn Rand shows the dismal struggles surrounding Kira Argounov in her communist environment. Through maginificent language, _We the Living_ forces empathy for starving masses; in a way that no news article can. As the book progresses, an awareness is awakened that every aspect of each person's life is painful, yet each person fights to keep on living. Ayn Rand presents a dieing city, and develops human characters who force themselves to live through it. Although, what these characters go through on a daily basis is not quite the same as living. Their USSR regulates the distribution of food, clothing, and shelter; a corrupt hierarchy with ambiguous goals and morals regulates every physical human necessity. The suffering is deadly, but the struggles for life are sifting through the propaganda and government denials, staking out some form of existence.
Ayn Rand analyzes a multitude of varied relationships, between deluges of personalities. Throughout the story, people grow and change as they try with all human strength to adapt to their new world. This novel is about character development in an environment created by Soviet mismanagement. It shows how people cope with the stresses of staying alive, when that in itself becomes the primary concern. Things taken for granted by the rest of the world are denied to a population of millions. A home, a job, and even one's own free time are all the concerns of an ever present government. Human nature is captured in the interactions of characters, and sometimes it can be a terrible thing. Power struggles created by the voids left by a revolution have to be settled, and some people will go to far to fill those voids. This is a fast read about politics and humanity that will leaves questions about all governments, and if this could ever happen again.

One thing always there but often not noticed in Ayn Rand's other works is an amazing sense of the environment. One really feels like one is living in the worlds Rand creates. This is particularly noticeable in this book, and it gives the reader a great awareness of what it is like to live under communism. Not only are the results of communism evident, but so are clear links to the cause (the absence of human rights). On top of all this, We the Living has great characters whom we get to observe as they change (or not, in Kira's case) under the brutal regime.

We the Living is a novel that examines the problems of Communism and its ideals, as well as illustrating the people whose lives are impacted by it. It is not only about Communism, however, but also about the fight of the individual against oppression and their struggle for freedom; a common theme in Ayn Rand's books and a core part of her philosophy, Objectivism.

I would definitely recommend this book, although not as enthusiastically as Ayn Rand's other novels like The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged. We the Living is certainly a good book to reach for if you are looking for an entertaining, thought-provoking novel.

This book is a genuine portrayal of humanity and is beautifully written. I was worried at certain points that real humanity would be betrayed by the reaction of a character, but it never was.
I have an idea in my imagination of what it might mean to the human character to live in times like these and the novel followed this --but, even when the story took an unexpected turn, it still made sense that a character could react in the way he/she did to the situation at hand.
Although this review is quite vague, the basic idea is give this novel a whole-hearted chance - it is a fascinating backdrop of an historic, traditional Russia shattered by political idealism taken to the extreme and an amazingly realistic and addictive character study in reaction to it.

This is my favorite of Ayn Rand's books. I began my love affair with "We the Living" back in the fifties and read it several times each year. My attitude toward Kira Argounova, however, has changed drastically as I've grown older. She represented a fascinating, fearless heroine who stood alone against a brutal world. But then I began to wonder why did she give up everything for the sadistic, beautiful Leo while delbirately destroying the only heroic character in the book: Andrei? Through the book, Kira arrogantly insists that nothing is greater than a person's ego. Yet, she becomes hot for the body of the Russian god, Leo, and goes crazy over him. Leo belongs with Rand's gallery of villians and I would definitely put Kira Argounova in there with them. She destroyed a noble, intense young Russian warrior in order to keep her sleazy hunk alive. There's nothing admirable or noble in what she does. She would fit in with the hookers on 42nd Street here in NYC.

This was the first Ayn Rand book that I ever read. She is a brilliant author, writing beautiful poetic prose (clever similes) at times and always getting her message across with vigor.

I subtract one star for a muddled plot. The middle of the book feels like a series of meaningless short stories with no bearing on what turns out to be the climax. The conflict does not rise steadily, which causes the reader's interest to sway. This is particularly surprising since Rand is a self-proclaim "Romanticist." The Romantic school focuses heavily on classic plot formation (Introduction, Rising Action, Climax, Falling Action, Conclusion) and rejects the Post-modernist fragmentation of story. (Catch-22 by Joseph Heller is a good example.)

That being said, the book is otherwise outstanding. Rand had first-hand experience with the evils of communism growing up in Russia, and the medium of fiction serves as a brilliant means to explain what she saw. The incredibly enormous bueracracy (sp?) of the U.S.S.R. is fascinating to look at. The governmental intrusion into every tiny aspect of human life is horrifying.

As I said above, the prose is very good. Perhaps what's so surprising about this is that this is Rand's first book! I am amazed at how mature the narrative style is and how well the political criticism is developed. Albeit, the full philosophy of Objectivism is absent, but it does not detract from the force of the message.

I highly recommend this book, especially for those who are curious about what life was REALLY like under the Leninist autocracy. In our age, Lenin seems to be getting a reputation for being "the good one" and Stalin as "the bad one." The truth is that they were both evil and they both killed enormous unknown amounts of innocent people, and tortured incredibly high numbers of others.

I am sure I will go on to read The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged.

It seems as though everyone has their own view of Ayn Rand's work; some agree with every point she makes to the point of obsession, some think that she is a terrible writer and philosopher and should not be published. She is definately a controversial writer. However, this book is different from pretty much all of her other work in that it concentrates more on the story than anything else. It was written before Rand's philosophy was completely forulated, which is definately a good thing in my opinion. The reader doesn't have to worry about agreeing completely with parts of the book and being repulsed by other aspects; it isn't a philosophical novel.

The fact that this is a love story and that I (who hates most "love" stories and wanted the butler to catch that stupid couple in Titanic) really enjoyed reading it speaks volumes. It takes an inquisitive look at the nature of love and how it works... and is usually extremely true when applied to real life (unlike some parts of her "masterpieces" The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged). The characters are extremely real and the setting is based on Rand's past experiences, which really adds to her work. Don't worry... although there are your typical speeches at the end by the antagonists and protagonists, they are not rants about how great capitalism is and how it is the best thing in the world to be selfish. The theme is totalitarianism and what it does to the human spirit, not "Prime Movers and how they function."

I would reccomend this book to anyone interested, not just the people obsessed with Objectivism. Of course, this is Rand's least-known book, so the general public will probably get their first taste of her through The Fountainhead or Atlas Shrugged, which is a shame. When she's at her best, Ayn Rand doesn't have to resort to rants that are in essence, a giant overreaction to things.

Some people seem to come away a little disappointed from this novel. I would guess that this is because this is one of Rand's lesser known works. The people who read this seem to have already made an acquaintance of Rand through The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged. Expecting the same tenor of philosophical writing, they are disappointed that this book contains little more than the emotional core of individualism. There is hardly any concrete philosophy, beyond a depiction of collectivism as it really is, in this book.

In truth, this book is Rand's best writing. We the Living is a true-to-life depiction of life under totalitarian rule. It's not philosophical. It's not journalistic writing - it applies to life under totalitarianism anywhere. We the Living shows the essential battle between the individual and the collective.

We the Living has a certain raw, emotional quality (which may be due to the fact that much of it is drawn directly from the author's experience. The closing scene of this novel has a depth of feeling rarely found in any literature.

I would recommend this as the first Rand novel one should read, followed by The Fountainhead. I would particularly recommend these two books to teenagers, as there is a great deal in both that resonates with the spirit of youth. Atlas Shrugged is a more philosophical novel, which is still important, even essential reading, but only after We the Living and The Fountainhead.

Some people seem to come away a little disappointed from this novel. I would guess that this is because this is one of Rand's lesser known works. The people who read this seem to have already made an acquaintance of Rand through The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged. Expecting the same tenor of philosophical writing, they are disappointed that this book contains little more than the emotional core of individualism. There is hardly any concrete philosophy, beyond a depiction of collectivism as it really is, in this book.

In truth, this book is Rand's best writing. We the Living is a true-to-life depiction of life under totalitarian rule. It's not philosophical. It's not journalistic writing - it applies to life under totalitarianism anywhere. We the Living shows the essential battle between the individual and the collective.

We the Living has a certain raw, emotional quality (which may be due to the fact that much of it is drawn directly from the author's experience. The closing scene of this novel has a depth of feeling rarely found in any literature.

I would recommend this as the first Rand novel one should read, followed by The Fountainhead. I would particularly recommend these two books to teenagers, as there is a great deal in both that resonates with the spirit of youth. Atlas Shrugged is a more philosophical novel, which is still important, even essential reading, but only after We the Living and The Fountainhead.