The triumphant characters of Anthem, The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged When reading Ayn Rand's works of fiction, one quickly becomes aware of her use of characterization to show a set of customs that apply to a group in today's society that he is describing. In Anthem, for example, even names have meaning in relation to the crux of the story. The name Liberty 5-3000, a gross defamation of her world's philosophy, becomes The Golden One, and then Gaea in the protagonist's eyes. This use of a name, of a face, to convey a group's message becomes a common thread through all four of Miss Rand's novels. The Source is no exception. Although the names do not carry enough meaning, the characters presented constitute a striking assessment of the personalities found in the artistic culture of this country. Howard Roark is the protagonist of the story; he is the John Galt of this book. Throughout the book, his character is balanced by numerous others. Henry Cameron is by far the saddest. While Howard represents a person who possesses the trait of honesty, Henry Cameron represents the man who has sold out his beliefs. While Howard recognizes the need to create for creation's sake, Henry Cameron is the shadow of all those who felt they could no longer create for 'the establishment'. you will never reach, they will never let you reach. There's no use taking that wonderful thing you have and making it an instrument of torture." .... "Accept them, Roark. Compromise." These were the words of a man who was not Henry Cameron, but the shadow of a man left to die by the side of the road by an institution that...... middle of paper...... “This, in every hour and in every matter, is your fundamental moral choice: to think or not to think, existence or non-existence, A or non-A, entity or zero.” “Then I will build a barrier… around it.” to my home... a barrier that my brothers will never be able to cross because they have nothing to fight me with other than the brute strength of their numbers. I Have My Mind is the dividing point between men in Ayn Rand's writings; the mind is the tool that built its worlds, and it is the only tool that will prevent humanity from facing the same battle that Howard Roark, John Galt, and Prometheus faced. These men will triumph. Works Cited: Rand, Ayn: Anthem. New York, NY: Penguin Group, 1946. Rand, Ayn: Atlas shrugged. New York, NY: Penguin Group, 1957. Rand, Ayn: The Fountainhead. New York, NY: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, Inc., 1943.