Albert Ellis, Influential Figure in Modern Psychology, Dies at 93


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I must that when I talk about the year 1968 I think the biggest event were the riots in Washington. The second biggest was the Rand-Branden split.

On another point I did not attend the Branden-Ellis but several people from DC did. All of them thought Branden was brilliant. I suspect that opinion during the summer of '68.

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  • 3 years later...

With my search engine browsing for "Ellis Objectivism religiion" I found this discussion. Allow me to add that in 1972, I found Eliis's book Reason and Emotion in Psychotherapy in a used bookstore. It sounded to me then a lot like Branden's recommendations. (I cannot argue that now. I have not seen the book in 40 years.) On the basis of that, I was surprised when friends then told me about the acrimonious 1967 debate. I should have known about it, because I was a subscriber to The Objectivist and the debate was announced there, but nothing more was said, and I simply forgot the reference.

The question itself remains interesting.

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In some of Ellis's pre-1967 books, you will find Atlas Shrugged recommended as an example of a "rational ethics." (see his "Sex and the Single Man", published in the early 1960s.).

After the famous Branden-Ellis debate, where Ellis reportedly launched off one of his typically sarcastic mocking (he was always spectacularly good at that sort of thing) of the plot line in Atlas Shrugged, Rand, who was in the audience, went ballistic. That was the end of any cooperation between Branden and Ellis.

In his later writings, Ellis stated that the concept of self-esteem was harmful to psychological health, because one should never be judgmental and engage in labeling. Even regarding oneself as positive is an error. Ellis's last book, published online just before he died at age 93, was an update of his 1968 book, Is Objectivism a Religion? In his revision he includes libertarians as dangerously religious.

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In his later writings, Ellis stated that the concept of self-esteem was harmful to psychological health, because one should never be judgmental and engage in labeling. Even regarding oneself as positive is an error. Ellis's last book, published online just before he died at age 93, was an update of his 1968 book, Is Objectivism a Religion? In his revision he includes libertarians as dangerously religious.

That might be true of the anarcho- capitalists.

Ba'al Chatzaf

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