There was a letter Einstein wrote to his wife [0], in which we see a different side of Einstein.
People are complicated beings.
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[0]: https://www.nytimes.com/1996/11/06/arts/dark-side-of-einstei...
People are complicated beings.
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[0]: https://www.nytimes.com/1996/11/06/arts/dark-side-of-einstei...
Marriages can be delicate, take a lot of hard work, and can break in any number of ways, when the two partners’ priorities don’t align. It’s a particular challenge if one of the partners is extremely busy with their work, often traveling alone, has lots of external obligations and commitments ....
These particular letters are evidence that Einstein had a bad relationship with his wife for many years and probably fell well short of her original expectations, being more occupied with his career than his family. But not necessarily evidence that he was a jerk or mistreating anyone. Without knowing a whole lot more about the situation it’s pretty hard to judge from a few letters.
(It is generally shitty that women were (and are) often expected to give up their careers to support their husbands’ careers, and later to raise children. As a society we could do a lot more to promote gender equality and help support families.)