A comparison of Ayn Rand's objectivist ethics and postmodern morality in terms of divine commandments

According to Ayn Rand's objectivist ethics, the individual's purpose is to rationally create their own values and live their life in accordance with those values. Rand asserts that an individual can only produce these values and live a good life by adhering to objectivist ethics. In contrast, postmodern moral thought is based on the idea that one should be skeptical of what is generally accepted and universally regarded as norms. In this sense, postmodern moral understandings are based on relativism and pluralism. The subject of this thesis is to explain the fundamental views of Rand's objectivist ethics and postmodern moral understandings and to identify the differences between them. Additionally, the relationship of both approaches to moral teachings based on divine command is also examined. The aim of this thesis is to understand the reasons behind the individualism and moral relativism prevalent in contemporary moral thought by explaining Rand's views, who is considered one of the leading theorists of modern liberal and capitalist morality, and postmodern moral perspectives. It also seeks to highlight their perspectives on divine command-based religious moralities. In doing so, the thesis aims to understand the reasons behind the moral orientations of today's individuals who have distanced themselves from divine-command morality and the underlying causes of the issues arising from these moral perspectives. Since postmodernism, by its nature, includes a diversity of views, while explaining postmodern moral thought, the contributions of Friedrich Nietzsche, Michel Foucault, the duo Gilles Deleuze - Félix Guattari, Jacques Derrida, Jean-François Lyotard, and Zygmunt Bauman to understanding postmodern morality have been addressed. Primary works of these thinkers were used initially in the study, followed by the examination of studies on their views. In this way, the views of the thinkers were presented, and an attempt was made to compare them in terms of their similarities and differences. To this extent, divine command-based moral values are rejected in objectivist ethics on the grounds that they harm the individual's rational interests, while postmodern moral thought questions these commands because they carry claims of universal truth and approaches them from a pluralistic framework. Both approaches attribute importance to individual freedom, but from different perspectives.