Who Are You?

I know I've already talked about Ayn Rand and The Fountainhead. I have an excuse about bringing it up again though. First, I read The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde. Second, I wrote an essay for a scholarship on The Fountainhead, so I had to do some review. I came to a bit of a different conclusion than my previous post.

Ayn Rand was right about one thing; one thing that is central to the book but one I honestly overlooked (or at least didn't mention in my other post.) Previously, I had critiqued the idea of selfishness as a value. But the point of The Fountainhead is about defining yourself. Ayn is contending that you should be a "self-sufficient man" in the sense others should not define who you are or what you believe. Here is where Oscar Wilde comes into play with an excellent quote from Dorian Gray, "… to influence a person is to give him one's own soul. He does not think his natural thoughts, or burn with his natural passions. His virtues are not real to him. His sins, if there are such things as sins, are borrowed. He becomes an echo of some one else's music, an actor of a part that has not been written for him. The aim of life is self-development. To realize one's nature perfectly – that is what each of us is here for."

Too many people are letting others define them, it is true. Why do you think Dr. Phil and Oprah are still so immensely popular? They tell you how to think, what to read, and, effectively, who you are. Culture seeks to define people, what they wear, what they like, and who they are … and this is what Ayn Rand sought to critique in her book.

I think she is right. You should not let others define who you are. They will ultimately define you wrong, not only because they are separate individuals and therefore incapable of totally knowing you, but also because an imperfect thing determining the values, truths, and ideas of another imperfect thing has an exponential factor of problems. That's like … wrong squared.

Dorian Gray, however, demonstrates that you cannot necessarily define yourself either. What we desire, what our nature compels us to do, and what we feel is right is not necessarily good, or just, or right. Often, it is neither right for ourselves or for those around us. The whole idea of Dorian Gray is a completely self-absorbed individual whose own soul becomes ugly and decrepit; his natural definition of his rights, wrongs, and values cause his ultimate destruction. On the other hand, if I feel a strong and very natural urge to punch someone, that is certainly right for me … but not for anyone who I decide to bash in the face.

So, you obviously can't let others define you. That much is given and accepted. But you can't really follow the Disney-fied ideal of "listening to your heart" because that will cause problems for you and others. Where then shall we turn for the definition of our ideals, goals, aspirations, truths, values, and character? How about the One who not only knows us, but created us? God can define what man cannot, and he will get it right … if we choose to listen.