Don Watkins
Mr. Watkins is vice president of fundraising and marketing at the Ayn Rand Institute. He is the best-selling author of books such as Equal Is Unfair (co-authored with Yaron Brook) and, most recently, Effective Egoism.
The Morality of Capitalism | 2025
Ayn Rand called capitalism the unknown ideal. But what makes it an ideal–and why has that ideal remained unknown? In this course, we’ll examine the philosophy, history, and economics of capitalism–and above all the debate over capitalism’s morality.
Price
$1,500.00
Level
100
Timing
Q3, Q4
Format
Live
About this course
Ayn Rand called capitalism the unknown ideal. But what makes it an ideal–and why has that ideal remained unknown? In this course, we’ll examine the philosophy, history, and economics of capitalism. Above all, we’ll examine the debate over capitalism’s morality–from opponents like Marx to alleged champions like Hayek. And we’ll see how Objectivism’s unique understanding and philosophical defense of capitalism cements it as the only moral social system.
Course Prerequisites
Corequisite: Objectivism through Ayn Rand’s Fiction or Intensive Seminar on Objectivism I
Instructors
Yaron Brook
Dr. Brook is chairman of the board of the Ayn Rand Institute. He is co-author, with Don Watkins, of In Pursuit of Wealth (2017), of Equal Is Unfair (2016), and of the national bestseller Free Market Revolution (2012). He is the host of The Yaron Brook Show on YouTube.
About Ayn Rand University
Ayn Rand described Objectivism as “a philosophy for living on earth.” This idea is at the heart of the Ayn Rand University, an online school of philosophy whose mission is to educate our students about Objectivism and to provide them with the intellectual, career, and life guidance they need to flourish.
Ayn Rand University provides an online educational experience, giving you the flexibility to attend from anywhere in the world. Each quarter, you’ll take one or more courses that feature lectures, graded assignments, classroom discussion, and feedback from our expert faculty. You may also meet regularly with one of our mentors, who will work with you to help you reach your learning and career goals so you can achieve success in thought and action. Though our program is demanding, most students find that they can succeed by devoting about 10 hours a week to their studies. And while we strongly encourage live attendance, all of our classes are recorded so that you can conveniently fit our classes into your schedule.
