read “The Moral Life” , Louis P. Pojman & Lewis Vaughm

Ayn Rand, “In Defense of Ethical Egoism,” pp. 504-513
Louis P. Pojman, “Egoism and Altruism: A Critique of Ayn Rand,” pp. 513-520

to answer:

Can the ethical egoist be a consistent egoist and have friends? If friendship entails loving another in such a way as to sacrifice one’s own interest for the friend’s, does this give the egoist difficulty? Socrates believes that one should never harm anyone else because doing so is never in one’s own interest. Is it possible to reconcile Socrates’ idea with Rand’s theory? Why or why not?