Rightwing groups have started attacking empathy itself, which literature fosters. Ayn Rand would approve but not Shakespeare.
Tag Archives: Ayn Rand
The Right’s Attacks on Empathy
The Novels That Promote End Times Fascism
The three strains of end times fascism that Klein and Taylor identify each have associated novels that have galvanized followers.
Peter Thiel, Palantir, and Sauron
In May, 2025 former Palantir employees warned that the company was becoming a Sauron-esque force for evil—in essence, resembling the crystal stone after which it was named.
Darkness at Noon in Trump’s America
Koestler’s novel “Darkness at Noon” applies only too well to rightwing “intellectual” and fascist advocate Curtis Yarvin.
A Partial Defense of Ayn Rand
In this Bulwark article, a writer says that Silicon Valley tech bros, while they admire Ayn Rand’s heroes, resemble more her villains.
Trump, His Billionaires, and Ayn Rand
Ayn Rand’s novels help explain why certain billionaires are gravitating to Donald Trump. Trump’s own enthusiasm about “The Fountainhead” is also revealing.
Rogers, Covid, and Atlas Shrugged
Quarterback Rogers’s favorite book, “Atlas Shrugged,” helps explain his Covid resistance.
Scott Atlas’s Miracle Covid Cure
Radiologist Scott Atlas has Trump’s ear about Covid, with disastrous implications. Perhaps he thinks he’s Charles Atlas or the Atlas in “Atlas Shrugged.”
Literature Has Paul Ryan’s Number
Lewis Carroll, Charles Dickens, Chinua Achebe, John Milton, and Thomas Hardy see through men like departing Speaker of the House Paul Ryan.

