Quotes from Ayn Rand

But those who were young had no thought left for spring and those who still thought were not young any longer.

A man's spirit is his self. That entity which is his consciousness. To think, to feel, to judge, to act are functions of the ego.

I'm not capable of suffering completely. I never have. It goes only down to a certain point and then it stops. As long as there is that untouched point, it's not really pain.

Integrity is the ability to stand by an idea. That presupposes the ability to think. Thinking is something one doesn't borrow or pawn.

You love your work. God help you, you love it! And thats the curse. That's the brand on your forehead for all of them to see. You love it and they know it, and they know they have you. Do you ever look at the people in the street? Aren't you afraid of them? I am. They move past you and they wear hats and they carry bundles. But that's not the substance of them. The substance of them is hatred for any man who loves his work. That's the only kind they fear. I don't know why

It's not a question of who will allow me to do it, it's a question of who will stop me.

No one's happiness but my own is in my power to achieve or to destroy.

There were sharp little blows in the music, and waves of quick, fine notes that burst and rolled like the thin, clear ringing of broken glass. There were slow notes, as if the cords of the violins trembled in hesitation, tense with the fullness of sound, taking a few measured steps before the leap into the explosion of laughter.

There's no such thing as a lousy job-only lousy men who don't care to do it.

Dagny, we can never lose the things we live for. We may have to change their form at times, if we've made an error, but the purpose remains the same and the forms are ours to make.

The world you desire can be won. It exists...it is real...it is possible...it's yours.

A spirit, too, needs fuel. It can run dry.