Rand's first major success as a writer came in 1943 with The Fountainhead, a novel about an uncompromising architect named Howard Roark and his struggle against what Rand described as "second-handers" who attempt to live through others, placing others above themselves.
ɹˈændz fˈɜːst mˈeɪdʒɚ səksˈɛs æz ɐ ɹˈaɪɾɚ kˈeɪm ɪn nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd fˈoːɹɾi θɹˈiː wɪððə fˈaʊntɪnhˌɛd, ɐ nˈɑːvəl ɐbˌaʊt ɐn ʌŋkˈɑːmpɹəmˌaɪzɪŋ ˈɑːɹkɪtˌɛkt nˈeɪmd hˈaʊɚd ɹˈoːɹk ænd hɪz stɹˈʌɡəl ɐɡˈɛnst wʌt ɹˈænd dᵻskɹˈaɪbd æz "sˈɛkəndhˈændɚz" hˌuː ɐtˈɛmpt tə lˈɪv θɹuː ˈʌðɚz, plˈeɪsɪŋ ˈʌðɚz əbˌʌv ðɛmsˈɛlvz.