Not selfishness, but precisely the absence of a self. Look at them. The man who cheats and lies, but preserves a respectable front. He knows himself to be dishonest, but others think he's honest and he derives his self-respect from that, second-hand. The man who takes credit for an achievement which is not his own. He knows himself to be mediocre, but he's great in the eyes of others.
("The Fountainhead")
More Quotes from Ayn Rand:
To demand 'sense' is the hallmark of nonsense. Nature does not make sense. Nothing makes sense.Ayn Rand
It's very uncomfortable to be a hero, Joel, and you don't have the figure for it.
Ayn Rand
Degrees of ability vary, but the basic principle remains the same: the degree of a man's independence, initiative and personal love for his work determines his talent as a worker and his worth as a man. Independence is the only gauge of human virtue and value. What a man is and makes of himself; not what he has or hasn't done for others. There is no substitute for personal dignity. There is no standard of personal dignity except independence.
Ayn Rand
It was a day in March, and the sky was a faint green with the first hint of spring. In Central Park, five hundred feet below, the earth caught the tone of the sky in a shade of brown that promised to become green, and the lakes lay like splinters of glass under the cobwebs of bare branches.
Ayn Rand
The truth is not for all men, but only for those who seek it.
Ayn Rand
If any part of your uncertainty, is a conflict between your heart and your mind follow your mind.
Ayn Rand
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