<p>good idea to list ayn rand as one of your favorite authors on college apps? Would adcoms who disagree with ayn rand's philosophy be prone to view this preference negatively?</p>
<p>wow so after reading your post i looked up Rand and what she has to say is really interesting. I seem to agree with a lot with what she says, of course i only looked at her in a cursory glance. Though i have looked at her views for just a lil bit, I have never found someone who's political views are so much like mine.<br>
Sorry this does not answer your q, i truly don't know the answer.</p>
<p>Better than Sally Rand.</p>
<p>That's their issue. Be honest and be expressive. If you're interested in Ayn Rand, trickstylez, check out Objectivism.</p>
<p>hmm anyone else?</p>
<p>Why would you not? Rand's philosophies are accepted in the philosophical community just as much as any of her peers and colleagues. Even if certain people disagree with her, there is no problem in saying you endorse her philosophy. People disagree with Searle or Adorno, you wouldn't be afraid to post that they are your favorite authors/philosophers, so why not Rand?</p>
<p>I don't see how it could be detrimental. Colleges look for people with different viewpoints-- they won't reject you just because you like an author who is known for more conservative philosophies.</p>
<p>Ayn Rand is a classic "favorite author" of bright adolescents. Which is not meant completely as a put-down. ;) In literary terms, her books are fairly simplistic. But they appeal to those who are interested in exploring ideas, and are easy, fun reads.</p>
<p>So an ad com has probably heard it all before.</p>
<p>But it will not set you apart.</p>
<p>
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So an ad com has probably heard it all before.
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</p>
<p>Yes, yes they have. Rand fanboying/fangirling is practically a stereotype for bright adolescents in the US (at least white ones - I'm not actually sure if this is true across the board).</p>
<p>jessiehl has got it. if she's really your favorite author, put it down. the worst someone will do is roll their eyes, you're not going to get rejected because of it.</p>
<p>philosophical community just as much as any of her peers and colleagues is untrue.</p>
<p>With some exceptions, like Robert Nozick, she's largely ignored by maintstream philosophers. The more charitable criticism I've heard is that her arguments lack rigor, and that there are professional philosophers who've covered the same topics she does in a more rigorous fashion. </p>
<p>In this view, she's regarded as the Olive Garden of Italian restaurants or a Dr. Phil to "real" psychologists.</p>
<p>OrangeMonkey, if you're interested in Rand's ideas, I recommend the ethical egoism chapter of James Rachels' "Elements of Moral Philosophy." This is a slim and popular ethics textbook. It has a nice list of references at the end of the book.</p>
<p>Her umm...not as nice critics contend that she's a wannabe pseudo philosopher (see Brian Leiter's blog), a crank who only appeals to teenagers or those who never outgrow adolescense, and an ideologue.</p>
<p>Edit* To actually respond to the question, I don't think it will hurt your application so long as you a write a well thought out and well written essay. Alot of admissions officers may not be familiar with Rand or even if they were, they're more interested in how you convey your thoughts to paper. You might write a paper on how much you love Jane Austen and why, and an admissions officer who happens to loathe Jane Austen may still like your essay if it's well crafted.</p>