In the second of Dr. Bernstein’s lectures he will explore two themes in a selection of works from William Shakespeare, Franz Kafka, and Ayn Rand. The first involves the role of the mind in human life—and features a comparison and contrast of two main characters each of whom are philosophers: Hamlet in the famous play of that name and John Galt in Atlas Shrugged.

The second theme is power lust and the abuse of power. Regarding this issue, Dr. Bernstein will examine Macbeth, Ellsworth Toohey from The Fountainhead, and the nameless bureaucrats responsible for destroying Josef K. in Kafka’s The Trial. The quest for, and the murderous abuse of power, it will be seen, come in many different forms.