Language and Communication - Themes, The Fountainhead | The Fountainhead - Summary, Themes and Characters - Novels PDF Download

In The Fountainhead, Roark's communication style is blunt. He's a straight-shooter. But other characters speak in roundabout ways and downplay what they are saying, often with the help of the media. For example, Toohey rambles on about things like charity and selflessness (which sound nice), but his underlying meaning turns out to be sinister. The Banner's anti-Roark pieces, spearheaded by Toohey, are often couched in terms of "the common good" in order to both justify and soften the attacks against Roark.

Toohey's manipulation of language mimics the way a lot of the dictators in the 1930s (Hitler, Stalin, Mussolini) utilized media in order to gain power. Rand opposed any sort of collective politics, and she questions the use of language and communication in order to explore the evil of people who manipulate popular opinion.

Chew on This

Try on an opinion or two, start a debate, or play the devil’s advocate.

Communication is often seen as a sort of terrifying power in the novel, whether it's manipulative (Toohey's communication tactics) or blunt (Roark's communication tactics).

Rand portrays journalists as people who rarely say what they really mean, and often deliberately confuse the public.