Saving the Enlightenment

Nov 18, 2025

Onkar Ghate, a senior scholar at the Ayn Rand Institute and lecturer on Objectivism, delves into the philosophical underpinnings of contemporary crises in Western society. He argues that our current challenges stem from a failure of the Enlightenment to articulate a morality of self-interest. Ghate critiques the fallout from events such as 9/11 and the COVID-19 pandemic as manifestations of a blind rebellion against self-sacrifice, advocating for Ayn Rand's Objectivism as a necessary moral framework to reclaim Enlightenment gains.

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INSIGHT

Enlightenment's Missing Moral Code

The Enlightenment achieved reason and freedom but left a moral gap: it lacked a philosophy that vindicated rational self-interest.
Onkar Ghate argues Ayn Rand's Objectivism supplies the radical moral code the Enlightenment needed to secure its gains.

INSIGHT

Blind Rebellion Defined

Contemporary politics shows a 'blind rebellion' against pervasive demands for self-sacrifice.
That rebellion lacks a principled concept of self-interest because the Enlightenment failed to provide one.

ANECDOTE

9/11 As A Pivotal Shock

Ghate treats 9/11 as a pivotal shock that revealed strategic and leadership failures and seeded distrust of elites.
He contrasts costly wars like Afghanistan and Iraq as emblematic self-sacrifice imposed on ordinary citizens.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4zPY_XnfS8 Podcast audio: The Enlightenment’s commitment to reason, individualism, and the power of knowledge sparked unprecedented progress in human life. Yet, despite this achievement, contemporary Western societies face deepening crises — mounting political violence, the collapse of alliances of free nations, and a growing support for authoritarian movements. What accounts for this reversal? In his talk, “Saving the Enlightenment,” delivered at ARI’s 2025 Objectivist Summer Conference, Onkar Ghate diagnoses the problem at its root: our cultural crises are the aftermath of a crucial philosophical gap left by the Enlightenment. Ghate argues that a key feature of our cultural landscape is “a blind rebellion against an orgy of self-sacrifice.” Crises like 9/11, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the widespread embrace of DEI initiatives marked the unfolding of self-sacrificial policies that cost American lives. Many who now condemn their leaders do not realize how those policies reflect the same moral code they still accept. They embrace alternative ideologies (like nationalism) that channel the same code. So they don’t know their real target: their rebellion against “elite” demands for self-sacrifice is “blind.” This blindness, Ghate contends, stems from the Enlightenment’s failure to articulate a morality of self-interest. While its philosophers championed reason in science and politics, they never provided an alternative to the ethical frameworks that demanded individuals subordinate their welfare to collective duty. Consequently, modern culture lacks a coherent philosophy that sanctions the individual’s right to pursue happiness. To secure the Enlightenment’s legacy, Ghate urges, requires adopting an ethical system that validates rational self-interest and personal happiness as moral goods — principles that only Ayn Rand’s philosophy of Objectivism fully articulates. Objectivism, in his view, provides “the new morality that's necessary to cement the achievements of the Enlightenment.” Among the topics covered: The Enlightenment and its failure The grip of self-sacrifice Self-sacrifice in the 21st century Today’s pseudo-selfishness Objectivism completes the Enlightenment This talk was recorded live on July 2nd in Boston, MA, as part of the 2025 Objectivist Summer Conference, and is available on The Ayn Rand Institute Podcast stream. Listen and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. Watch archived podcasts here.