THE FOUNTAINHEAD - A POINT OF VIEW

You don’t have to pay for imagining…. So I’d use the liberty”:

Some day, 1943;

I, the owner of the world’s biggest publishing house, was sitting in my office. My secretary called me up and said that a lady wished to meet me. I was reading a rather lousy manuscript so didn’t mind taking a break. I gave a short instruction to my secretary “tell her to come in”.
A few minutes later a woman walked into my office. She was about forty but her wrinkles made her appear much older. She had dark circles underneath her eyes testifying the fact that she was either a drunkard or an insomniac. I ushered her to sit and politely whispered “good morning”. She smiled rather clumsily as if I had just told her joke which she failed to understand.
“Hi, I am Ayn Rand. A novelist.”
“Hi, I am Anirban Sengupta. A publisher. A millionaire.”
“I know. Actually I have written a novel and …”
“You want me to publish it. Is it that simple?”
“If you could kindly go through the manuscript once…”
“Of course, I will. That’s my job. It’s a known fact that I cultivate writers… it may so happen that I may not like the script as a whole … but I like something about it … and that is enough to fetch a lifetime’s fortune for you. Even if this one is not published you may become a well read name.”
“When do I come back?”
“At present there are over hundred manuscripts pending…besides there is a lot of other work too… come after six months…”
“Okay”
She left and I continued what I was doing. Few hours later when the novel which I was currently reading had bored me to death … I decided to take a short break. Casually I started browsing through the script the lady had left behind. It was called “The fountainhead”. ‘Interesting’ I thought. Far better than the usual titles I come across. Titles such as “Mr. Henry’s dream” or “when two lonely hearts meet.” At times I preferred to judge a book by its cover. I started reading “the fountainhead”….

Six months was rather a long time. I realized that very well….I cursed myself for not keeping a contact of hers. I feverishly read through directories hoping to find an address or phone number…It was a futile attempt.

Six months later Ayn Rand returned to my office. She was looking much more refreshed… perhaps she was holidaying.
“Did you read it?”
“Yeah I did. Ten times. It is the only book that I have been reading for the past six months.”
“Did you like it?”
“I hated it.”
“Could I have the script back…? “
“Of course not. I have an offer to make.” I handed her a few printed papers.
I continued “it is a contract… I will summarize was the contract contains … this novel will not be published. Ever. Henceforth my publishing house will publish whatever you write….but you will write what I want … I wont allow any fountainhead to reach the world….you have no option but to agree. You must be aware about my hold in the publishing circuit. If I ban you no publisher in any corner of the world will ever publish your stuff… and for complying with the contract you will be paid more than you can expect.”
She sat quietly for a few minutes and said “I agree.”
In the years to come Ayn Rand became famous as a writer of sensational novels. Her name was repeatedly discussed in social circles. Some of her novels were made into block buster movies. Her writings earned her millions … she became a household name.

“The fountainhead” remained in my closet for few years before I had the courage to burn it down to ashes.

……………………………………………………………………………………………..
I wish things had happened like that. I would be the first and the last reader of the novel. The enlightenment (oops I should rather say ‘the irritation’) would have been solely mine. Like Jesus Christ I would have saved the world from the severe torture that was meted out to it. The classic would have been saved from a thousand wrong hands and a thousand misinterpretations.
Each time someone says that ‘the fountainhead’ has inspired him… he blatantly yells out the fact that he is just another guy in the league of misinterpreters. ‘Fountainhead’ can inspire no one; it can convey no lesson …. It can’t prove any point. It serves no purpose at all … it doesn’t really make anyone think and above all it doesn’t entertain…. Do you think such a work should be allowed to survive… allowed to frustrate generations?
Ayn Rand should have selected some other media to transmit her philosophy. That would have been better than harassing the innocent readers who were rightly expecting some sensationalism and perhaps some thought to chew on in the years to come. Introducing them to Toohey, Wynand and Roark is crime….
Roark, Toohey, Wynand, Keating and Dominique are the various protagonists who are representing particular forms of human nature. Just like Keating represents the average successful man, Roark is a mere personification of integrity … Roark is a destination which is beyond the scope of reach. Wynand is born with the power to become a Roark but worldliness makes him swing between Roark’s instincts and Keating’s judgments. Dominique is a woman prepared exclusively for a Roark …the only person who can ably fight for him when Roark decides to suffer. Ellsworth Toohey, a fiery writer and power maniac, is omnipresent throughout the book and is perhaps the common worlds only whip against all sort of Roarkism.
Confused already? Just imagine what the 694 pages of tiny print could do to you. It would unnecessarily make you feel great in a worldly backdrop which you’ll start considering as shit…. Is all this necessary? If you do not read fountainhead your life will be the same… but if you read it your condition will definitely worsen.
Throughout the novel the author tries to do justice to all the protagonists but end up piling up all her sympathies for Howard Roark. She keeps on telling her reader ‘be like Roark, at least fail in the attempt.’ To conclude it may be said objectively that there two type of people in this world…those who have met Howard Roark and those who haven’t; however there is just one breed of human beings…those who have not understood Howard Roark.

Anirban Sengupta