Socialists come to power in the United States and the government is heading for "equal opportunities", considering it fair to make worthless and untalented rich at the expense of the talented and wealthy. The persecution of business leads to the destruction of the economy, moreover, one by one, under mysterious circumstances, talented people and the best entrepreneurs begin to disappear. The main characters of the novel, King of Steel Hank Rearden and vice president of the railway company Dagny Taggart, are trying in vain to resist the tragic events. Instead of general prosperity, society plunges into apathy and chaos.