Rand's definition of value ("that which one acts to gain and/or keep") appears, among other places, in her essay on "The Objectivist Ethics" in The Virtue of Selfishness: A New Concept of Egoism (New York: Penguin Books, 1961), p. 16 (more information). On the surface, her definition seems to imply that specific goals of actions are "values" regardless of whether or not those goals promote the life of the organism. Her ensuing discussion, however, points toward the other interpretation—namely, that "values" must support the organism's life, which is the implicit goal of the whole process of life activity. For instance, she states (p. 17) that "the ultimate value ... is the organism's life," which "sets the standard by which all lesser goals are evaluated" (italics in original).

In this course, it is recognized that the two senses of the word represent different concepts, which are closely related but must nevertheless be distinguished. Since human beings may take both pro-life and anti-life actions, both concepts are necessary for a full understanding of human action.