The Ayn Rand Institute’s Fountainhead Essay Contest offers a unique platform for students to engage deeply with literature and philosophy. The deadline is September 13, 2024.
This modern classic is the story of intransigent young architect Howard Roark, whose integrity was as unyielding as granite…of Dominique Francon, the exquisitely beautiful woman who loved Roark passionately, but married his worst enemy…and of the fanatic denunciation unleashed by an enraged society against a great creator.
As fresh today as it was then, Rand’s provocative novel presents one of the most challenging ideas in all of fiction—that man’s ego is the fountainhead of human progress.
For nearly four decades, the Ayn Rand Institute has hosted annual student essay contests on Ayn Rand’s novels. These contests encourage students to seriously engage with Rand’s ideas through reflection on her profound and influential novels. Students who participate will need to read the book they have selected carefully, grapple with its complex themes, and push the boundaries of their writing ability. By doing so, we hope students will achieve a deeper appreciation for Rand’s literary works and develop a curiosity for the philosophy that underlies them.
Steven Mallory tells Roark that he fears there is something like a “drooling beast of prey” that is hanging over the world. What do we learn from the rest of the book about what is the object of Mallory’s fear and in what way is it like a beast of prey? How does Roark help Mallory and others learn to overcome it? How does Roark’s success in helping his friends combat this fear relate to the theme of the novel? To answer all of these questions, give specific examples from the novel.
The contest is open to middle and high school students worldwide, aged 13 and older. Students can enter by submitting an essay based on the provided prompt related to Ayn Rand’s novel, “The Fountainhead.”
Interested participants can register through this link.
The deadline for submission is September 13, 2024.
