Essays on Ayn Rand’s "We the Living"

This is the second edition of the study of Ayn Rand's first novel, We the Living, which is set in Soviet Russia, and was written in 1936, ten years after she left the U.S.S.R. Topics explored include: the fascinating history behind the novel's creation; its autobiographical nature; its reception during America's "Red Decade"; its connection to Victor Hugo (Rand's favorite novelist); and, the philosophy of freedom and the sanctity of life which it portrays and defends.

PrefaceAcknowledgmentsBibliographical NotePart 1: The History of We the LivingChapter 1: From Airtight to We the Living: The Drafts of Ayn Rand's First Novelby Shoshana MilgramChapter 2: Parallel Lives: Models and Inspirations for Characters in We the Livingby Scott McConnellChapter 3: We the Living and the Rosenbaum Family Lettersby Dina Schein FedermanChapter 4: The Education of Kira Argounova and Leo Kovalenskyby Shoshana MilgramChapter 5: Russian Revolutionary Ideology and We the Livingby John RidpathChapter 6: The Music of We the Livingby Michael S. BerlinerChapter 7: Publishing We the Livingby Richard E. RalstonChapter 8: Reviews of We the Livingby Michael S. BerlinerChapter 9: Adapting We the Livingby Jeff BrittingChapter 10: We the Living: '36 and '59by Robert MayhewPart 2: We the Living as Literature and as PhilosophyChapter 11: We the Living and Victor Hugo: Ayn Rand's First Novel and the Novelist She Ranked Firstby Shoshana MilgramChapter 12: Red Pawn: Ayn Rand's other Story of Soviet Russiaby Jena TrammellChapter 13: The Integration of Plot and Theme in We the Livingby Andrew BernsteinChapter 14: The sacred in We the Livingby Robert MayhewChapter 15: The Plight of Leo Kovalenskyby Onkar GhateChapter 16: Kira's Familyby John David LewisChapter 17: Kira Argounova Laughed: Humor and Joy in We the Livingby Robert MayhewChapter 18: Forbidding Life to Those Still Livingby Tara SmithChapter 19: The Death Premise in We the Living and Atlas Shruggedby Onkar GhateEpilogue: Introduction to We the Livingby Leonard PeikoffSelect BibliographyIndexAbout the Contributors