Objectivism is the philosophy founded by the novelist and philosopher Ayn Rand. The philosophy is said to be an integrated system of ideas devoted to establishing what is true and necessary for man's survival. Objectivism holds that these ideas are what enable man to surive qua man, i.e. that allow man to live as he can, should and ought to live. These ideas are categorized in a series of five branches that are interrelated and compose an indivisible sum for man to apprehend for his survival:

1) Metaphysics - The Objectivist metaphysics is the most basic branch of the Objectivist philosophy. The importance of studying metaphysics, holds Objectivism, is to define the role of man's consciousness in the reality that exists as an objective absolute.

2) Epistemology - The Objectivist epistemology is the second basic branch of this philosophy. Resting on the Objectivist metaphysics, this science is devoted to studying the nature and means of human knowledge. The Objectivist position on its epistemology is that the universe is knowable by human beings who carry out the specific steps that its understanding entails.

3) Ethics - The Objectivist ethics is the broadest of the three evaluative branches in Rand's philosophy. This science is devoted to studying the normative morality that is based soley on reason, not faith, wishes, whims, arbitrary edict, and so forth. Rand often said that this morality is one that can be proved by means of logic and demonstrated to be true and necessary.

4) Politics - The Objectivist politics is an evaluative branch applies Objectivism's normative ethics to social questions. Unlike any other politcal philosophy, argues Objectivism, the Objectivist philosophy advocates total, unregulated laissez-faire capitalism.

5) Esthetics - The Objectivism esthetics is an evaluative branch that holds art as a selective re-creation of reality according to an artist's metaphysical value-judgments. Romanticism is the conceptual category of art Objectivists hold as the rational man's fuel for living qua rational man.