| | This is a fine article, Joe. Objectivists must do much more than simply announce a system of philosophical abstractions to the world. They must realize that they're in a competitive intellectual marketplace--and that principles of marketing apply. They must also realize the objective spiritual needs of their audiences--and offer not just words, but a nourishing spiritual vision that will serve as a viable lifestyle alternative to what already exists.
As a first step toward grasping what needs to be done, I am going to exhort readers to go out and buy the books of marketing gurus Jack Trout and Al Ries. These include: Marketing Warfare, Positioning and Focus. Reading those three books (and they are "quick reads") will open your eyes to a whole new world. They are vital to those among you who wish to have your ideas be noticed and become culturally influential.
Once you've read (and re-read) those titles, I suggest you then read the following:
The Rise of Christianity by Rodney Starke -- on how people really adopt new philosophical frames of reference, and the unrecognized importance of creating social institutions to support the "conversions" of individuals to your point of view
The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell -- on the mechanics of how cultural change actually occurs
And finally, my most seemingly off-topic, but completely relevant offering: The Writer's Journey by Christopher Vogler.
This last is a book on fiction writing by a leading Hollywood "script doctor," who structures his editing efforts on the "mythic archetypes" drawn from the book Hero With a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell. What in hell has this to do with cultural change?--you rightly ask. Everything, I reply. Because to the extent to which we effectively frame our messages to reflect the timeless heroic mythology described in these books, we'll add the compelling and universally attractive spiritual dimension to our persuasive efforts--a dimension absent in our too-often arid and abstract philosophical preaching. That is exactly what Ayn Rand did, as you'll see when you read the book. And that is also the reason why no Objectivist since has had her power and influence.
Those of you who read these books with the goal of answering the question, How can this material apply to the spread of Objectivism?, will be enriched in more ways than you can possibly imagine.
Thanks, Joe, for opening a door that I hope won't close anytime soon.
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