The novel Atlas Shrugged (1957) was written by Russian American author Ayn Rand. Widely considered to be the author’s magnum opus, Atlas Shrugged is a divisive text that has remained popular in the public consciousness despite harsh criticism from academics and philosophers across the political spectrum. Set in a dystopian US wherein the collectivist government bureaucracy has a stranglehold on industry, the narrative follows protagonist Dagny Taggart as she fights to defend her family’s transcontinental railway while grappling with a national strike of individual geniuses, led by the enigmatic John Galt.

The novel promotes radical individualism, unregulated capitalism, and the value of objective reason, presenting a comprehensive exposé of Rand’s philosophy of objectivism. This systematic philosophy is closely linked with 20th-century American libertarianism and teaches that the pursuit of one’s own happiness and satisfaction is the ultimate virtue. Atlas Shrugged explores themes such as The Objectivist Perspective of Morality, Radical Individualism and Idolization of the Lone Genius Archetype, and The Weaponization of Victimhood. Such themes and perspectives are strongly influenced by the geopolitical context of the Cold War tension between the communist USSR and capitalist US.

This guide uses the 2007 Penguin Books Modern Classics edition.

Content Warning: This guide discusses ableism and death by suicide.

Plot summary

Atlas Shrugged follows protagonist Dagny Taggart as she struggles to run the Taggart Transcontinental railway because of the interference of a society of entitled “parasites” and “looters.” She works to rebuild the Rio Norte line, which is needed to carry vital traffic for businessman Elliot Wyatt’s flourishing Colorado oil fields and the industrial center growing up around them. Dagny renames it the John Galt line in defiance of the common rhetorical question “Who is John Galt?” which functions as an expression of hopelessness and surrender as the nationwide economy stagnates and declines. Dagny builds the line using rail made of a new alloy, “Rearden Metal,” invented by steel tycoon Hank Rearden. Together, Dagny and Rearden face public backlash, political sabotage, and the ongoing shortage of intelligent workers as increasing numbers of successful and productive men quit their jobs and disappear.

Dagny and Rearden are victorious in building the line and begin an affair that celebrates their respective worth and sexuality. Dagny discovers the abandoned remains of a prototype motor that could—if repaired—revolutionize the way the world is powered. The growing productivity of Colorado is repressed and eventually stymied altogether by a series of (what Dagny sees as) exploitative bills passed by Washington politicians. In protest, Wyatt sets his oil fields ablaze and disappears along with the other Colorado businessmen.

Rearden is subjected to growing indignities and restrictions in both his work and private life. His family uses The Weaponization of Victimhood to control and hurt him, while looters from Washington steal his businesses and inventions and attempt to exert control over him through blackmail and threats. He finds unexpected solace in the company and friendship of Dagny’s childhood friend and former lover, Francisco d’Anconia, who holds the same objectivist values as Rearden and Dagny despite appearing to the world as a hedonist.

Dagny suspects that a secret destroyer is contributing to the gradual collapse of society and the ever-growing number of productive men disappearing. She flies a plane into the Rocky Mountains on the trail of the destroyer and crashes in a hidden valley known by its occupants as “Galt’s Gulch.” There she meets the destroyer, Galt, who exemplifies the objectivist ideal of Radical Individualism and Idolization of the Lone Genius Archetype. He is leading a nationwide strike of geniuses to tear down the looters who exploit them. He shows her the utopian community that they have built, and she reconciles with Francisco, who has been working with Galt the whole time. Despite having fallen in love with Galt, Dagny ultimately decides that she is not yet ready to give up the fight for her view of a better society.

The outside world has fallen deeper into ruination in her absence, and Rearden has grown increasingly confident in his defiance of the looters through his growing acceptance of objectivist principles. When his steel mills are attacked by a Washington-led mob, he finally accepts the necessity of quitting and leaves with Francisco. Galt broadcasts a message detailing The Objectivist Perspective of Morality and encouraging the public to accept the philosophy and stop obstructing his aims. He has followed Dagny to New York out of love and is arrested by the looters who torture him to try and make him work for them. He resists, and Dagny and the other men of Galt’s Gulch rescue him. They retreat to the valley until the society outside has fully collapsed, and then they prepare to build a new world.