6. Einstein’s Demands, Part 1
Einstein is, without a doubt, one of the greatest minds of the 20th century. Unfortunately, he was far less illustrious as a husband to his first wife, mathematician Mileva Marić. Einstein moved Marić and their children, against her wishes, to Berlin where he became reacquainted with his first cousin, Elena, whom he would eventually marry after Marić divorced him. There continues to be debate over whether or not Marić helped Einstein in his work, being a gifted mathematician herself. Their son asserts that Marić gave up her mathematical ambitions after marrying Einstein, while others argue Einstein didn’t credit her work.
In 1914, Einstein and Marić’ marriage was falling apart. They had been married for 11 years but were not happy together, especially after the move to Berlin where Marić felt depressed and alone. Einstein made a rather callous proposal that year: that they stay married for the sake of their children, but only if she agreed to a onerously long list of demands written by Einstein. Perhaps it wasn’t apparent at the turn of the 20th century, but any marriage that involves a list of written requests is bound to end very badly, and “staying together for the kids” is rarely a good idea either. Ironic that two brilliant mathematical minds would have undertaken such a poorly thought out scheme.