Nazarenko, D. A. The Novel of Ayn Rand ‘Atlas Shrugged’ in Terms of the USA Feminist Movement in the Second Half of the 20th Century

Abstract: The object of the present research is the structure of images in the novel written by an American author Ayn Rand ‘Atlas Shrugged’. The subject of the research is the representation of Ayn Rand’s on women and their role in the society through the central female characters of the novel. Nazarenko also pays much attention to the response of the feminist movement to Rand’s writing in the American literary criticism of the 20th century. The main purpose of the article is to define what kind of relationship there is between Ayn Rand’s views and feminism. The research which results are presented in the article has been carried out using such methods as the cultural-historical, biographical, sociological and comparative methods. The scientific novelty of the research is caused by the fact that Ayn Rand’s views on the role of women in the society are usually regarded as anti-feminist (Ayn Rand herself insisted on that). However, in this article Nazarenko proves the thesis that the philosophy of the rational individualism followed by Rand in her novels and the basic ideas of the feminist movement actually have mutual grounds. The researcher presents the point of view according to which Ayn Rand’s views have a number of similar features with the ideas of the third-wave American feminism movement. The urgency of the present research is caused by the fact that it makes a contribution to the solution of the question which still remains open. It is the question whether Ayn Rand should be considered to be an adherent or opponent of feminism.

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