Ayn Rand's novels pit independent heroes against the forces of collectivism. In We the Living, three passionate valuers are crushed by a totalitarian state. Anthemshows a thinker clashing with a society that has extirpated all individualistic concepts. The Fountainhead depicts an innovator struggling against a pervasive second-handedness. Atlas Shrugged features the men of the mind on strike against an incipient collectivist dictatorship. Why does Ayn Rand repeatedly present this issue? What are the principles underlying her varying formulations? How does each book represent a deeper understanding of this most virulent enemy of the mind? This talk answers these questions.