Example Of Individualism In Ayn Rand's 'The Fountainhead'?

In The Fountainhead, Ayn Rand achieves in giving her characters such powerful personalities and depth that the reader can actually fall in love with their fictional thoughts and souls. The love story that takes place between Howard Roark and Dominique Francon is disparate than any other that has been written before. Although Dominique loves Howard Roark, she seeks to destroy him throughout the book and Rand leaves us with the lingering question; why?

Howard Roark is selfish and the most hard headed individualist in the book. Although he has the talent and power to create, he refuses to build anything for anyone but himself; it must be exactly how he wants it to be with no alterations. He is the author’s version of an ideal man and an example of free will; quite the opposite of Peter Keating. He is an independent character who doesn’t change in the slightest bit throughout all of the hardships he endures. Rand illustrates Roark’s individuality by emphasizing his hostility for institutions. He gets expelled from the Stanton Institute because his designs are too different and he refuses to conform to the conventional standards. Keating finally convinces him to work at Francon & Heyer, a conventional design firm, but Roark is entirely uninterested and begins to work for the individualistic Henry Cameron. At the Stoddard Temple trial, Roark puts astonishing little effort to win the case. The legal system is irrelevant to him and he cares only to defend the integrity of his work. He also cares very little about marriage because it is an unnecessary formality. He is hardly concerned when Dominique informs him that she had married Keating because he sees no point in becoming jealous over something so meaningless.

Dominique Francon is ...

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...d that does not appreciate Roark. The same night, Dominique tells Roark that she loves him for the first time. The marriage between her and Keeting is a scam and lasts a short amount of time. Dominique then decides to marry Gail Wynand, who is a character very similar to Roark, varying only in the fact that he depends on the public in order to be successful. Roark loves Wynand, but again commits adultery with Dominique because he loves her and cares about no values but his own.

Dominque loves Roark because he reaches his highest potential. However, her pessimism drives her to the despairing belief that he has no chance to succeed in a world utterly hostile to him. In an attempt to wreck Roark’s career, she joins forces with Ellsworth Toohey. He must die at her hand, because she is the one who loves him, rather than by the hand of a society that envies his greatness.