Status
Available
Call number
Collections
Publication
Signet (2011), Edition: Reissue, 528 pages
Description
We the Living portrays the impact of the Russian Revolution on three people who demand the right to live their own lives. At its center is a girl whose passionate love is her fortress against the cruelty and oppression of a totalitarian state. Ayn Rand said: It is as near to an autobiography as I will ever write.
User reviews
LibraryThing member LisaMaria_C
Ayn Rand's ideas are so controversial and notorious I think it's hard for many to evaluate her novels fairly. I am an admirer, even if not an uncritical one, and think if you read only one novel of hers, it probably should be Atlas Shrugged--that's the book that best represents her philosophy if
Maybe that's because, as Rand herself said, We the Living "is as near an autobiography" as she'd ever write, that though the plot and characters are from her imagination, "the background is not." The setting is revolutionary Russia in the twenties, which is where Rand came of age before she came to America. The novel revolves around a love triangle: Kira, the central protagonist, is in love with Leo, a counter-revolutionary, and in order to save his life gets involved with Andrei, an idealistic communist and a decent man. In many ways I find Andrei the most interesting, complex and sympathetic character in the novel--not what you might expect from Rand's reputation. But there may be no better way to show how the Communist Revolution betrayed what is human than through someone who fought for its ideals.
This, on the other hand, is definitely Rand's darkest work--but I think it's rewarding to read particularly as a bleak but vivid portrait of Soviet Russia from a keen observer that escaped it. I personally find Rand's style striking and lyrical; there are many passages that are memorable and quotable and it's a compelling read with a powerful impact.
Show More
you want to understand her and her influence. But We The Living, Rand's first novel, is more approachable--much shorter, far less didactic and with characters that are more human and complex than the almost abstractions you see in her other novels. Maybe that's because, as Rand herself said, We the Living "is as near an autobiography" as she'd ever write, that though the plot and characters are from her imagination, "the background is not." The setting is revolutionary Russia in the twenties, which is where Rand came of age before she came to America. The novel revolves around a love triangle: Kira, the central protagonist, is in love with Leo, a counter-revolutionary, and in order to save his life gets involved with Andrei, an idealistic communist and a decent man. In many ways I find Andrei the most interesting, complex and sympathetic character in the novel--not what you might expect from Rand's reputation. But there may be no better way to show how the Communist Revolution betrayed what is human than through someone who fought for its ideals.
This, on the other hand, is definitely Rand's darkest work--but I think it's rewarding to read particularly as a bleak but vivid portrait of Soviet Russia from a keen observer that escaped it. I personally find Rand's style striking and lyrical; there are many passages that are memorable and quotable and it's a compelling read with a powerful impact.
Show Less
LibraryThing member timoroso
In short, We the Living is aesthetically imperfect. The characters often give unnatural speeches, the descriptive passages do not support the story in the way they should, and the language is sometimes awkward. Still, it is a good early description of life in Soviet Russia, and it has quite an
The novel has perhaps too many characters, since there is not enough space to develop them all fully. For example, we do not know how the doubts the characters have. Some characters seem to be there only for Rand to make a point, and do not help the story. The protagonist is somewhat flat (more about that later). Some of the minor characters seem pointless, but some of them are interesting and could have a larger role.
Please stop reading if you want to avoid knowing details about the story.
In the end, we do not really get to know the protagonist Kira at all. It is remarkable that while we follow her through the whole novel, we never really get a good idea of what she wants. In the beginning she wants to build bridges, for one reason or another. Then this dream is taken away from her. She begins to love two men (or at least one), but we never really understand the emotional effects of this love, and it remains possible that it is not love at all but just an obsession. As the novel progresses, she grows always more negative, wanting to escape for the sake of escaping. This might work as a dramatization of how totalitarianism destroys the ideals of a person, but since Kira's ideals were so vague to begin with, the effect is weak.
An interesting thing is that Rand seems to have changed her opinions after writing We the Living. She puts a lot of rhetorical effort into making Leo the bad guy and Andrei the good guy. It is as if there was bad potential in Leo and good potential in Andrei, and this potential is fulfilled in the end. Yet Rand, writing years after the publication of the novel, indicates that Leo is philosophically the good guy, and that it is only the evil system that makes him bad. Accordingly, Andrei is a fool, although a fool with courage and some integrity. I think that Rand is making a forced, unjustified reinterpretation of her old text.
While not completely innocent, We the Living for the most part manages to escape being just a long sermon (which is something for which Rand is often criticized).
Show More
entertaining story despite all the gloominess.The novel has perhaps too many characters, since there is not enough space to develop them all fully. For example, we do not know how the doubts the characters have. Some characters seem to be there only for Rand to make a point, and do not help the story. The protagonist is somewhat flat (more about that later). Some of the minor characters seem pointless, but some of them are interesting and could have a larger role.
Please stop reading if you want to avoid knowing details about the story.
In the end, we do not really get to know the protagonist Kira at all. It is remarkable that while we follow her through the whole novel, we never really get a good idea of what she wants. In the beginning she wants to build bridges, for one reason or another. Then this dream is taken away from her. She begins to love two men (or at least one), but we never really understand the emotional effects of this love, and it remains possible that it is not love at all but just an obsession. As the novel progresses, she grows always more negative, wanting to escape for the sake of escaping. This might work as a dramatization of how totalitarianism destroys the ideals of a person, but since Kira's ideals were so vague to begin with, the effect is weak.
An interesting thing is that Rand seems to have changed her opinions after writing We the Living. She puts a lot of rhetorical effort into making Leo the bad guy and Andrei the good guy. It is as if there was bad potential in Leo and good potential in Andrei, and this potential is fulfilled in the end. Yet Rand, writing years after the publication of the novel, indicates that Leo is philosophically the good guy, and that it is only the evil system that makes him bad. Accordingly, Andrei is a fool, although a fool with courage and some integrity. I think that Rand is making a forced, unjustified reinterpretation of her old text.
While not completely innocent, We the Living for the most part manages to escape being just a long sermon (which is something for which Rand is often criticized).
Show Less
LibraryThing member TonyaSB
I finished reading We the Living, the first novel by Ayn Rand, a few days ago but have not written about yet simply because I didn't know what to say. First off I will say that read The Fountainhead about ten years ago and loved it. It changed me. It is the book that made me interested in fiction
So, I was obsessed with the characters from The Fountainhead for a long time after reading it. Years. I'm not joking. I still think about this book and the main character's view on life and the world around him quite often. Maybe it's because I've never been good at kissing ass and trying to be friendly to the "right" people. In junior and high school that meant I'd never be popular. In college it meant my professors (especially my music history and band director) did not look at me as their favorites. There's a surprising amount of ass-kissing that goes on in music departments. I was just trying to get my degree and move on. I kind of related to Howard Roark.
So, looking back it is very surprising that I never read Ayn Rand's first novel. (On a side note, I also recently found out her name is NOT pronounced like Ann but like I-an). Maybe I was afraid it would not make as big an impact. Maybe I wasn't ready for more mind opening ideas. Maybe I needed to digest what I had just read first. I don't know, but I never read any other novels by her. I read about her philosophy and other things but no other novels. Until now. I was inspired recently by quotes from a person I went to college with in another discussion on The God Delusion to take it up. Or at least one of her other novels.
Rand states about We the Living: "It is as near an autobiography as I will ever write. The plot is invented, the background is not...The specific events of Kira's life were not mine; her convictions, her values, were and are."
Kira is 18 years old, living in the early years of Soviet Russia when the book begins. She truly does not care about the political climate of her country. She doesn't care about much of anything that is not directly related to her getting what she wants: a degree as an architect. She states that she wants to build bridges of aluminum, and believes she will one day. Nothing is more important to her than that, until she meets Leo. Leo is mysterious and idealistic. He opens her up to the possibility of something else being important in the world. Her love for Leo leads her to do things she would never otherwise do. The love of another man for her brings complications beyond her imagining. Andrei is a communist who believes whole-heartedly in the ideals that began the revolution. He was involved in bringing the revolution about. Leo's father was executed for being a counter-revolutionary. Kira is caught not between two men but between to extreme ideals. She wants to fight against the communists but their treatment of the people have taken a toll on Leo and he changes. Not for the better. She doesn't know how to fight in the face of this. Andrei's staunch support of the original revolutionaries sets him in opposition to the corrupt individuals who have wormed their way to the top of political system. He also changes because of Kira. For the better.
I will not give away anymore of the plot except to say this story does not have a happy ending. I want to leave you with a quote from Kira, another character that I believe will live with me for a long time. This quote is not about the unhappy ending. That is something else.
The doctor said he was going to die. And I loved him. He didn't need much. Only rest, and fresh air, and food. He had no right to that, had he? Your state said so. We tried to beg. We begged humbly. Do you know what they said? There was a doctor in a hospital and he said he had hundreds on his waiting list...You see, you must understand this thoroughly. No one does. No one sees it, but I do, I can't help it, I see it, you must see it, too. You understand? Hundreds. Thousands. Millions.... And they had a chance to go on living. But not Leo... That is why you had sentenced him to death, and others like him, an execution without a firing squad. There was a big commissar and I went to see him. He told me that a hundred thousand workers had died in the civil war and why couldn't one aristocrat die - in the face of the Union of Socialist Soviet Republics?
Show More
with a purpose. I have been a fan of Fantasy and Sci-fi all my life and had been putting aside practically everything else. Directly after reading this I read 1984. It is odd that in school they make us read Animal Farm instead. I understand all the symbolism and blah, blah, blah of the book, but 1984 makes a much bigger impact. It is what made me begin to sit up and take notice of the world around me. I began watching the news and trying to figure out our political system, because no one in school ever made it make sense, even with all their history and civics classes.So, I was obsessed with the characters from The Fountainhead for a long time after reading it. Years. I'm not joking. I still think about this book and the main character's view on life and the world around him quite often. Maybe it's because I've never been good at kissing ass and trying to be friendly to the "right" people. In junior and high school that meant I'd never be popular. In college it meant my professors (especially my music history and band director) did not look at me as their favorites. There's a surprising amount of ass-kissing that goes on in music departments. I was just trying to get my degree and move on. I kind of related to Howard Roark.
So, looking back it is very surprising that I never read Ayn Rand's first novel. (On a side note, I also recently found out her name is NOT pronounced like Ann but like I-an). Maybe I was afraid it would not make as big an impact. Maybe I wasn't ready for more mind opening ideas. Maybe I needed to digest what I had just read first. I don't know, but I never read any other novels by her. I read about her philosophy and other things but no other novels. Until now. I was inspired recently by quotes from a person I went to college with in another discussion on The God Delusion to take it up. Or at least one of her other novels.
Rand states about We the Living: "It is as near an autobiography as I will ever write. The plot is invented, the background is not...The specific events of Kira's life were not mine; her convictions, her values, were and are."
Kira is 18 years old, living in the early years of Soviet Russia when the book begins. She truly does not care about the political climate of her country. She doesn't care about much of anything that is not directly related to her getting what she wants: a degree as an architect. She states that she wants to build bridges of aluminum, and believes she will one day. Nothing is more important to her than that, until she meets Leo. Leo is mysterious and idealistic. He opens her up to the possibility of something else being important in the world. Her love for Leo leads her to do things she would never otherwise do. The love of another man for her brings complications beyond her imagining. Andrei is a communist who believes whole-heartedly in the ideals that began the revolution. He was involved in bringing the revolution about. Leo's father was executed for being a counter-revolutionary. Kira is caught not between two men but between to extreme ideals. She wants to fight against the communists but their treatment of the people have taken a toll on Leo and he changes. Not for the better. She doesn't know how to fight in the face of this. Andrei's staunch support of the original revolutionaries sets him in opposition to the corrupt individuals who have wormed their way to the top of political system. He also changes because of Kira. For the better.
I will not give away anymore of the plot except to say this story does not have a happy ending. I want to leave you with a quote from Kira, another character that I believe will live with me for a long time. This quote is not about the unhappy ending. That is something else.
The doctor said he was going to die. And I loved him. He didn't need much. Only rest, and fresh air, and food. He had no right to that, had he? Your state said so. We tried to beg. We begged humbly. Do you know what they said? There was a doctor in a hospital and he said he had hundreds on his waiting list...You see, you must understand this thoroughly. No one does. No one sees it, but I do, I can't help it, I see it, you must see it, too. You understand? Hundreds. Thousands. Millions.... And they had a chance to go on living. But not Leo... That is why you had sentenced him to death, and others like him, an execution without a firing squad. There was a big commissar and I went to see him. He told me that a hundred thousand workers had died in the civil war and why couldn't one aristocrat die - in the face of the Union of Socialist Soviet Republics?
Show Less
LibraryThing member Renzomalo
Unlike Atlas Shrugged, Ayn Rand’s We The Living is a semi-autobiographical account of Kira Argounova’s rebellion against Vladimir Lenin’s new Soviet government in post-revolutionary Petrograd (St. Petersburg). It is a novel reminiscent of Pasternak’s Doctor Zhivago; both scathing
As usual Ayn Rand is verbose and pedantic but at her best when describing the deprived lives of the once prosperous and productive citizens of Petrograd as they struggle against the stifling control of a massive, brutal and inefficient centralized government. She is at her worst – as usual - when preaching her philosophy of Objectivism/individualism in long, drawn out monologues that she passed as dialog, which happened all too often.
A good read, taken altogether, but more fascinating for its detailed, insightful portrayal of post-revolutionary Russia’s moral and cultural decline than in its somewhat predictable plot.
Show More
indictments of an oppressive proletariat culture and the subsequent suppression of individual freedom.As usual Ayn Rand is verbose and pedantic but at her best when describing the deprived lives of the once prosperous and productive citizens of Petrograd as they struggle against the stifling control of a massive, brutal and inefficient centralized government. She is at her worst – as usual - when preaching her philosophy of Objectivism/individualism in long, drawn out monologues that she passed as dialog, which happened all too often.
A good read, taken altogether, but more fascinating for its detailed, insightful portrayal of post-revolutionary Russia’s moral and cultural decline than in its somewhat predictable plot.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Angelic55blonde
This is Ayn Rand's first novel and I really liked it. Although it's not as indepth or developed as "Atlas Shrugged" or "the Fountainhead", it's still a great piece of work. Anyone who likes Ayn Rand should definitely read this.
LibraryThing member k8_not_kate
We The Living, a rather dark tale set in early Soviet Russia, is admittedly not Rand's finest achievement by any means, but it offers a facinsating look inside the USSR and into why Rand developed her philosophy. Rand herself fled Russia in the twenties, so the events and atmosphere is certainly
Show More
genuine. Definetly worth a read for the Rand fan, those interested in life in the former USSR, or anyone simply looking for a moving story. Show Less
LibraryThing member justmeRosalie
THIS BOOK CHANGED MY LIFE, AS WELL AS GIVING ME AN UNDERSTANDING OF COMMUNISM AND WHAT WAS GOING ON AT THE TIME IN HISTORY. IT WAS A GREAT SOCIOLOGICAL STUDY. I AM MUCH MORE AWARE OF POLITICAL MOVEMENT NOW, AND MUCH MORE LEARY OF WHAT I HEAR ABOUT.
LibraryThing member Wiszard
I decided to read Ayn Rand because i'm a huge Rush fan. Obviously it is well documented that Neal Peart, Rush's drummer is heavily influenced by Ms. Rand. Some say this is the closest thing to an auto-biography ever published by the author. This all said, I recommend this book to be read by
Show More
everyone. This writing style makes you feel like you are living in 1920s Russia. Dark and depressing, the writing shows why Ayn Rand hated communism. Show Less
LibraryThing member dekan
this was an excellent book. i really like rand and her books. i thought that i'd read this one but didn't remember so read it again/ course it turned out i hadn't read it yet. this book really gives you the feel of russian oppression. it takes you to the inside of both sides and gives you an
Show More
interesting view. and of course she'd know. that's another reason i like this author she was there. also her philosophy and perspective is one that will make you think. Show Less
LibraryThing member SheilaCornelisse
A fantastic novel depicting the effects of the Russian Revolution on the lives of three main characters - Kira Argounova (a young socialite whose family must now live in poverty), and the two men she is romantically involved with, one a revolutionary, the other a government official.
Although
Definitely a recommended read.
Although
Show More
depressing and tragic at times, the reader gets absorbed into this world and can sympathize with the characters,Definitely a recommended read.
Show Less
LibraryThing member ReneeRobinson
WE The Living-by Ayn Rand- This is a sweet and touching story. The main character is like a mirror of her own image. What I mean is she has both a positive and negative side. She has two sides like a mirror. Both sides are real except one is real, the other is an image. Kira, the character, is
There is sadness within the story but the reader is easily drawn to this woman as there is something about her that most of us can relate to. Whether it is yourself or a relative, there is something real and dependable. It is a beautiful read with depth and style that will always be classy.
Show More
strong-willed but also weak. She is a good hearted person but she does have a bad side which she struggles with.She is a very likable character and seems very real and believability.There is sadness within the story but the reader is easily drawn to this woman as there is something about her that most of us can relate to. Whether it is yourself or a relative, there is something real and dependable. It is a beautiful read with depth and style that will always be classy.
Show Less
LibraryThing member VickyKaseorg
We the Living by Ayn Rand is not the type of book you want to read if feeling a little down. It will drag you so far under the depths of happiness that you may find it difficult to ever again emerge. The devastating results of communistic thought and government is portrayed with great pathos and
Show More
conviction. It is clear Rand suffered mightily under this system, and wants desperately to convict the world that not only is communism in practice a horror, but the premise itself is one that should be rejected. She writes as compelling a case as I have ever read of the fallacy that communism in any way is noble. To adopt the premises inherent in communistic systems is to subjugate the greatest potentials of the individual or excellence or unique achievement to the lowest common denominator of the ugly masses. What is particularly frightening to me as I read this book is how similar the news of today in America is to the beginnings of communism is the USSR. I pray many people look closely again at Rand's work and heed its warning. Show Less
LibraryThing member jpsnow
This one's so sobering. It's still typical of her other works, though more raw. She described it as the closest thing to an autobiography she would write, and that comes through. Perhaps it should be forced on anyone advocating communism.
LibraryThing member RonManners
"To those who found in Ayn Rand's best sellers THE FOUNTAINHEAD and ATLAI SHRUGGED a powerful voice raised in de fense of the individual, this book is must. It proclaims the same explosivE philosophy, and its theme is one of thE most significant of our day—the right of the individual to the
Taken from the Back Cover.
Show More
pursuit of his own happiness. It portrays the impact of the Russian Revolution on three people who demand the right to live their own lives. It tells of a girl's passionate love, held like a fortress against the viciousness, cruelty and oppression of a totalitarian state."Taken from the Back Cover.
Show Less
LibraryThing member snowflake9903
This is a mostly autobiograhical look at young Ayn's life. I enjoyed reading about post - revolution Russia. It really helpd me comprehend their people and way of life during that time a little better. It's an amazing book and I can't recommend it highly enough. Rand is a master.
LibraryThing member spvaughan
After more than 30 years, I still remember crying at the end of this book.
LibraryThing member GretchenLynn
A window into life in the USSR. This book was was wonderful and utterly depressing at the same time.
Subjects
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
1936
Physical description
528 p.; 4.17 inches
ISBN
9780451233592
Other editions
We the Living (75th-Anniversary Edition) by Ayn Rand (Paperback)