Podcast
Questions and Answers
At what age did Ayn Rand teach herself to read?
At what age did Ayn Rand teach herself to read?
Age six
Who was the writer that Ayn Rand admired the most?
Who was the writer that Ayn Rand admired the most?
Victor Hugo
What did Ayn Rand decide to make her career at the age of nine?
What did Ayn Rand decide to make her career at the age of nine?
Fiction writing
Which revolution did Ayn Rand support during her high school years?
Which revolution did Ayn Rand support during her high school years?
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Where did Ayn Rand enter to study screenwriting in 1924?
Where did Ayn Rand enter to study screenwriting in 1924?
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When did Ayn Rand arrive in New York City?
When did Ayn Rand arrive in New York City?
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What was the title of Ayn Rand's first screenplay that she sold to Universal Pictures?
What was the title of Ayn Rand's first screenplay that she sold to Universal Pictures?
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Which of Ayn Rand's novels was based on her years under Soviet tyranny?
Which of Ayn Rand's novels was based on her years under Soviet tyranny?
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What was the title of Ayn Rand's major novel published in 1957?
What was the title of Ayn Rand's major novel published in 1957?
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In what year did Ayn Rand start writing her major novel, Atlas Shrugged?
In what year did Ayn Rand start writing her major novel, Atlas Shrugged?
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Study Notes
Ayn Rand's Early Life
- Ayn Rand was born in St.Petersburg, Russia, on February 2, 1905.
- At age six, she taught herself to read and discovered her first fictional hero in a French magazine for children.
- At the age of nine, she decided to make fiction writing her career.
Russian Revolution and Education
- During her high school years, she witnessed the Kerensky Revolution and the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917.
- Her family escaped to the Crimea, where she finished high school, and later returned to Petrograd.
- She was opposed to the mysticism and collectivism of Russian culture, and instead, considered herself a European writer.
- She studied philosophy and history at the University of Petrograd, graduating in 1924.
Move to the United States
- In 1925, she obtained permission to leave Soviet Russia for a visit to relatives in the United States.
- She arrived in New York City in February 1926 and spent six months with her relatives in Chicago.
- She then left for Hollywood to pursue a career as a screenwriter.
Career in Hollywood
- On her second day in Hollywood, Cecil B.DeMille offered her a job as an extra and then as a script reader.
- She met and married actor Frank O'Connor in 1929.
- She struggled for several years at various non-writing jobs before selling her first screenplay, "Red Pawn," to Universal Pictures in 1932.
- Her first novel, We the Living, was published in 1936 and was based on her years under Soviet tyranny.
Writing Career
- She began writing The Fountainhead in 1935, which was rejected by twelve publishers but finally accepted by the Bobbs-Merrill Company.
- The Fountainhead was published in 1943 and became a best seller through word-of-mouth.
- She began her major novel, Atlas Shrugged, in 1946 and published it in 1957.
- Atlas Shrugged was her greatest achievement and last work of fiction.
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Description
Test your knowledge on the life of Ayn Rand, a Russian-American writer and philosopher known for her novels promoting individualism and capitalism. Learn about her early life, influences, and literary career in this quiz.
