“For Roark-Dominique suit”

These notes come from Rand trying to work out the events of Part II. The page is undated but matches up to her original, June 1938, detailed outline in terms of the content (see this item).

Part of Rand’s original plan for the novel’s second part included a lawsuit in which Roark was forced to sue Dominique. The dramatic tension of Roark bringing suit against Dominique in public while their love affair was going on in private makes it clear why Rand considered including this event.

However, no such lawsuit occurs in the novel. In this page of notes, Rand pushed herself to answer questions about the logic of such a lawsuit, and she ultimately decided against including it. As seen throughout this exhibit, her focus on plot led her to eliminate an event that, however dramatic, did not actually benefit the story.