John Galt is one of the main characters in Ayn Rand's novel Atlas Shrugged. An engineer by trade, Galt is the male hero of the story; his actions include withdrawing his talents, 'stopping the motor of the world', and leading the 'strikers' against the 'looters'.
The question "Who is John Galt?" is asked repeatedly throughout the story. Despite rumours and legends, the identity of the actual Galt is learned only after a prolonged search by Dagny Taggart, the female heroic character, with whom Galt has a romantic relationship. Galt is the same character as the Mystery Worker.
Biography
The son of an Ohio garage mechanic, Galt left home at age 12 and began college at Patrick Henry University at age 16. There he befriended Francisco d'Anconia and Ragnar Danneskjöld, all three of whom double-majored in physics and philosophy. They were the cherished students of the brilliant scientist Robert Stadler and the brilliant philosopher Hugh Akston.
After graduating, Galt became an engineer at the Twentieth
Century Motor Works where he designed a revolutionary new motor powered by ambient static electricity with the potential
to change the world. Like Ellis Wyatt, he created what many had for years
said was impossible. When the company owners decided to run the factory by the collectivist maxim, 'By each according to his
ability, to each according to his need', Galt organized a successful
Secretly, these captains of industry, led by Galt and banker Midas Mulligan, had created their own society — a secret enclave of rational individualists living in 'Galt's Gulch', a town secluded high in a wilderness of mountains in Colorado. Dagny accidentally finds the town — and a shocked John Galt — by crash-landing a light aircraft while pursuing Quentin Daniels.
Who is John Galt?
Since everyone across the country is repeating the phrase, "Who is John Galt?", it is natural that many people have attempted to answer that question. The phrase becomes an expression of helplessness and despair at the current state of the world. Dagny Taggart hears a number of John Galt Legends before finding the real John Galt and eventually joining his cause, and learning that all of the stories have an element of truth to them.
See also
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