Atlas Shrugged, Part 1, Chapter 6, section 2:
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After the anniversary party, late in the evening,
Hank Rearden enters his wife's bedroom in order to have sex with her. He does this reluctantly - he wishes he did not have these feelings, but he cannot resist the urge.
Lillian accedes perfunctorily, and starts talking about the party, because talking is what people are supposed to do before making love. As she jabbers, Rearden wonders why she married him, and recalls the details of their courtship and early marriage. He thinks about how unfulfilling his sex with Lillian has been, and how his marriage has been a torture. By the time she is done talking, Rearden has lost his desire and returns to his own room. It is his first glimpse of the premise, from Rand's
sexual theory, that one's sexual desires are an expression of one's values.
Lillian Rearden's bedroom.
Balph Eubank - Mentioned.
Bertram Scudder - Mentioned.
Dagny Taggart - Mentioned.
Francisco d'Anconia - Mentioned.
Hank Rearden
Lillian Rearden
Mrs. Weston - Mentioned.
Simon Pritchett - Mentioned.
Simons - Mentioned.