The Ayn Rand Essay Contest is for anyone with an inquisitive mind, who cares about philosophy, individuality, and exploring the depth of a literary text. For the past four decades, the Ayn Rand Institute has allowed high school students to dissect Rand’s novels, and search for deeper meanings and personal connections to passages and themes within her texts. Whether you choose to write about Anthem, The Fountainhead, or Atlas Shrugged, the Ayn Rand Essay Contest will ask you to second-guess what you think you know and build a new understanding of critical analysis in the process.

The Ayn Rand Essay Contest offers three different prompts each for Anthem, The Fountainhead, and Atlas Shrugged. With new prompts every year, students can select the prompt that speaks to them the most and write an essay between 800 and 1,600 words. As students explore the relevance of a quote or a novel’s title, they learn how to approach literary analyses from a micro level, while also relating key themes or messages in the text to Rand’s philosophies—as well as their own. The Ayn Rand Essay Contest positions students as just as important to literary discourses as any scholar.

The consulting team at J&B advocates independent thought, inquiry, and confidence. By collaborating with students and helping them craft what they want to say, J&B approaches the Ayn Rand Essay Contest as a dual learning opportunity: a chance to analyze an iconic text and trust the value of your voice and insights.