Chapter 4. The Immovable Movers.
Characters
McNamara: contractor
Eddie
Dagny
Richard Halley: Dagny enjoys listening his Concerto 4
Francisco: appears in a newspaper article Dagny reads
Jim
Betty Pope: Jim’s girlfriend
Dan Conway: president of the Phoenix-Durango
Ellis Wyatt: shows up at Dagny’s office
Hank
Where are all the people going?
McNamara quits. As the best contractor in the country, Dagny was depending on him to finish the Rio Norte Line. He walks out on his contract, on all his contracts, and nobody knows or understands why. Many questions arise. Why did he quit? Where did he go? Why are all of the capable people disappearing?
Anti-dog-eat-dog Rule
The Anti-dog-eat-dog Rule was voted on and passed by the National Alliance of Railroads. The rule would put Dan Conway’s Phoenix-Durango Line out of business within nine months. “They did not like the Anti-dog-eat-dog rule; they had hoped it would never be brought up. But when it was brought up, they voted for it… There were only five dissenters who voted against it. Yet when the chairman announced that the measure had passed, there was no cheering, no sounds of approval, no movement, nothing but a heavy silence. The last minute, every one of them had hoped that someone would save them from it.” If this is the case, why did they vote for it? It harkens back to what Boyle said at the beginning of chapter 3, “When people are unanimous, how does one man dare to dissent?” The passing of this rule marks the first official rejection of capitalism in the book.
Dagny goes to see Dan Conway and convince him to fight it. But, he won’t. He agreed to do what the majority voted and will stand by his word. Rand is showing the mistake of falling for the majority rule. It’s “nothing more than a mob rule, where fifty-one percent of the people my take away the rights of the other forty-nine” (Thomas Jefferson).
Hank and Dagny
Dagny meets with Hank to see if he could her the rail in just nine months. They discuss the Rule and what is going on in the world, along with their jobs and lives. It is obvious that there is a rare connection between the two. The chapter ends with Rearden telling Dagny that “Whatever we are, it’s we who move the world and it’s we who’ll pull it through.”
Quotes
“While it was true that such areas offered little economic incentive at present, a public-spirited railroad, it was said, would undertake to provide transportation for the struggling inhabitants, since the prime purpose of a railroad was public service, not profit.” National Alliance of Railroads meeting to pass the Anti-dog-eat-dog Rule.
“It is proper, it is noble, that he should have endured suffering, injustice, abuse at the hands of his brothers– in order to enrich their lives and teach them to appreciate the beauty of great music.” Said of Richard Halley. He retired the next day.
“I do not make terms with incompetence.” Ellis Wyatt to Dagny, demanding the Rio Norte Line to be running smoothly by the time the Phoenix-Durango Line is shut down.
Possible Discussion Question/Journal Entry/Things to Think About
1. What does the Anti-dog-eat-dog Rule do? What does the National Alliance of Railroads hope to accomplish? What type of economy does it create? What are the implications of this Rule? Do you think Rearden is right when he says that it is just temporary or do you think similar rules will be passed throughout society?
The English Student 