Alex Massie Alex Massie

The Gentleman’s Gentleman Shrugged

Your weekend essay question comes from Blood and Treasure:

It always struck me that the antonym of Ayn Rand is PG Wodehouse. In Wodehouse world, it’s the servants who have all the brains, do all the work and generally carry everybody else. If Jeeves shrugged, society would collapse. Who is John Galt? Bertie Wooster, that’s who. This is maybe why no-one takes Rand seriously in Britain. And Ayn Rand done by Wodehouse definitely strikes me as an opportunity missed.

Discuss.

Personally, I’ve generally been under the impression that Ayn Rand was something of an Aunt Agatha type. Best avoided, then.

Get Britain's best politics newsletters

Register to get The Spectator's insight and opinion straight to your inbox. You can then read two free articles each week.

Already a subscriber? Log in

Comments

Join the debate for just $5 for 3 months

Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first three months for $5.

Already a subscriber? Log in