Lexi Taber Mrs. Press/Mrs.

Wittmann English 10 Honors August 3, 2010

Einstein: His Life and Universe Throughout the course of history, humans have sought to discover what it means to live a worthy life. We often admire people who have achieved fame and fortune, believing that these things are indicators of a worthy life. But the label of worth is subjective, defined only by the character in question and the situation in which he or she is being viewed. There are some individuals that led indisputably important lives. Albert Einstein, the brilliant scientist and famously free thinker, might be the best representation of these people. His selfless dedication to the future of Physics is one of the many reasons why he completely personifies what it means to live a worthy life. Although prestige and perfection may be what first come to mind when asked the definition of worth, the true meaning lies deeper. The worth of a life can be defined by a person s desire to achieve their goals, no matter what is standing in their way. An important characteristic that Einstein possessed was tenacity. His experiments and theories failed countless times, but he always continued forward, in his words, There is no success like failure. Einstein followed this belief religiously, living with a stubborn determination. When he could not prove a hypothesis, Einstein would forgo food and sleep instead of giving up on the theory. Even when Einstein s experiments did succeed, he struggled with introducing them to society. Einstein was infamously vague in his explanations, but instead of giving up he worked hard to get make his ideas understandable. To ensure clarity, Einstein often read his articles to his step-daughter. Although Einstein tried to tailor his articles to the general public, there were times when he was not accepted. When the articles were labeled as too short or not informative, Einstein would refuse to back down and would resubmit the same article, editing one sentence or adding an adjective until the journal published his work. The determination Einstein possessed was a reason why he led a worthy life.

Throughout his lifetime, Albert Einstein refused to become engrossed in self pity. This helped him to succeed. As a child, Einstein developed echolalia, which caused him to repeat statements under his breath before he spoke them aloud. This quirky condition earned him the nickname Der Depperte , or the Dopey One. While most children would be discouraged by their disability, the young Einstein instead became determined to overcome the speech impairment. By the time he was ten, he was articulate and even showed an exceptional aptitude for math and science. In addition to overcoming his childhood disability, Einstein also had to live with constant rejection. In his work, he struggle with his scientific theories. Because his proposals were based solely on hypotheses with little tangible evidence, they were often mocked and not accepted. Even his now famous 1905 paper on the Quantum Theory was not recognized as fact until he released the experimental function a year later. However, Einstein did not let society s

wariness dishearten him. He realized that there would always be skepticism, and he must not allow it to discourage him. Einstein also endured conflict in his personal life. Because of his research, Einstein was often isolated from his wife and young sons. This separation devastated the genius, but he refused to become depressed. Instead of mourning his personal troubles, he dove into work, challenging his professional issues. Einstein s lack of self pity was a contributing factor to his successful life. Prejudice was something Einstein struggled against throughout his lifetime. As a child, he was teased and targeted because of his Jewish heritage, even though his family was devout in the religion. Anti-Semitism was prevalent, and physical attacks and verbal insults were frequent, he once stated in an interview. [Einstein, his Life and Universe, Page 15] As he grew older, the racism became more radical. Eventually, Einstein left Germany for Switzerland, unable to work under a Nazi government. The prejudice Einstein faced caused him to give up on his faith and turn to scientific law. Even when he stripped himself of his Hebrew values, people judged him. Einstein refused to speak out against the racism he dealt with, believing that a passive stance was his only option. Although fled from racial intolerance, he was unable to escape it completely. During World War Two, Einstein was unable to return to Germany in fear of religious persecution. Even after the end of the war, tense relations convinced him to revoke his German citizenship and move to America.

Eventually, he was able to relocate into an environment where his ideas were accepted without any consideration of his heritage. The fact that Einstein succeeded in his life goals regardless of the racism he faced was one reason why he led a worthy life. Although some people will disagree, it is obvious that Albert Einstein was one of the most recognizable and influential scientists that ever lived. His name alone is now a standard symbol of irrefutable genius. Einstein changed the way the scientific world functioned, with ground breaking discoveries in gravity, relativity, quantum physics and atomic studies. Einstein is even accredited with being the father of modern physics . Einstein succeeded in his lifetime even though he struggled to overcome prejudice and selfpity. His tenacity helped him to become the man he is idolized as today.