title: Why can my object not access it's own private member variable? [C++]
body: <p>I have a class called <code>class Car</code>, which has be instantiated as the object <code>Car car1</code>. One of the member variables of Car is <code>Car::width</code>, but when I try to execute the line</p>
  
  <pre><code>cout &lt;&lt; car1.width &lt;&lt; endl;
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>from <code>main()</code> I am told that this is not possible because <code>Car::width</code> is private. It was my understanding that private members could be accessed by the objects of the class to which they belong, but this situation has me completely stumped. What's the deal with private members being accesses by their own objects?</p>