BaalChatzaf Posted December 7, 2007 Share Posted December 7, 2007 "You are all I long for, all I worship and adore." (lyric from "Fly Me to the Moon")Yucccchhhh! Heathen idol worship! Self worship is narcissism and other worship is idolatry. We are meat. Proof? I have seen postmortems first hand. Ba'al Chatzaf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matus1976 Posted December 7, 2007 Author Share Posted December 7, 2007 And if it is only human nature we are expected to worship, why did Rand say that it is only the male sex that is to be worshipped and not women as well, who surely partake of human nature and the human potential? Yet she shuddered at the idea of a man "worshiping" the human potential residing in a woman -- and she wrote that the essence of masculinity is man's relationship to existence, the essence of femininity is hero-worship. If we are to worship a potential, what could that possibly have to do with femininity? And why should women not worship every man on earth, since all of them possess a human nature? The more one attempts to concretize this issue and discover what actions and reactions it suggests, the more confusing it becomes.BarbaraThanks for your comments here Barbara, I am glad to see I was not the only one left confused. Your last statement was exactly my point, the more one tries to identify and pin down exactly what is meant here the less it makes sense (to me at least) I've repeatedly asked people I've discussed this with, who agree with Rand's general assertion, what exactly it means to worship. Every example given made just as much sense in each direction. Rand seemed to simaltaneously assert that worship was not something that pertained to any 'relative' difference, and also that it included 'looking up to' and 'admiring'; a contradiction to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matus1976 Posted December 7, 2007 Author Share Posted December 7, 2007 Jesus Johannesburg, South-frickin'-Africa -- it would really help if you people would read what Rand actually wrote, instead of chewing on a straw-man!Indeed -I worship my wife's femininity and nobility of spirit; and I adore her. I worship the human potential, and I admire those who actualize it.Rand explicitly stated that worship was only a proper psychological reaction of a woman in response to a man. From your statement it seems you (as I do) disagree with this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Stuart Kelly Posted December 7, 2007 Share Posted December 7, 2007 Barbara,Don't you find it supremely ironic that the person who claimed that the masculine was to be worshiped and shuddered at the thought of worshiping the feminine has spawned a legacy of Rand worshipers?Maybe they forget she was female...Or something... Michael Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
studiodekadent Posted December 9, 2007 Share Posted December 9, 2007 Yucccchhhh! Heathen idol worship! Self worship is narcissism and other worship is idolatry. We are meat. Proof? I have seen postmortems first hand.If one is a narcissist, should not one worship (to varying degrees) others that are like oneself?And lets just remember that to Rand, worship is an extreme form of affection (affection being the feeling that results from seeing one's values in another). Its not mystical or anything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
studiodekadent Posted December 9, 2007 Share Posted December 9, 2007 Maybe they forget she was female...Well, she did wear her masculine characteristics on her sleeve. Indeed, in Ayn Rand, Homosexuality and Human Liberation, Sciabarra speculates that maybe Ayn Rand was a masculine-who-worships-masculine gay man in a woman's body. It would explain quite a bit. However I reject the idea of gender essentialism anyway, so my opinion of Rand's pronouncements on 'proper' 'masculinity' or 'femininity' is already known. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barbara Branden Posted December 9, 2007 Share Posted December 9, 2007 Barbara,Don't you find it supremely ironic that the person who claimed that the masculine was to be worshiped and shuddered at the thought of worshiping the feminine has spawned a legacy of Rand worshipers?Maybe they forget she was female...Or something... MichaelMichael, "or something" seems to be the only answer that makes sense of it.Barbara Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now