Einstein thought that his work as a scientist could not be separated from his work as a citizen, something that he was clear about until the end of his days. His work ethic was always impeccable.
Albert Einstein not only formulated the most important scientific theory of the 20th century but also, unlike many colleagues, he was a man of integrity in ethical and political issues.
As Philip Ball narrates in the fantastic book In the Service of the Reich. Physics in the time of Hitler (Turner), Einstein was the only relevant physicist who openly criticized the Nazis since he knew of their existence. When Hitler conquered power in Germany, the physicist was traveling to the United States and announced that he would never return to what had been his host country until “civil liberty, tolerance and equality before the law” were restored. which made him one of the declared enemies of the Third Reich.
And yes, Einstein was Jewish, but unlike many colleagues (of work and of “race”, as the Nazis would say) he denounced what he considered unjust without hesitation, something that many relevant German Jews did not do from the beginning, who thought that National Socialism would be only a temporary madness. Einstein, furthermore, did not marry anyone. Previously, before anti-Semitism became widespread in a sick Europe, Einstein had opposed the First World War and, later, despite being a convinced Zionist, he criticized the convenience of creating the state of Israel, betting on the union of Arabs and Jews, “to reach a mutual understanding.”
Einstein thought that his work as a scientist could not be separated from his work as a citizen, something that he was clear about until the end of his days. Although he formulated his theory of relativity in 1915 and won the Nobel Prize in 1921, he continued to work in his field of study for more than 40 years, knowing that it was impossible to go any higher.
The last day of Albert Einstein
Einstein worked until the moment of his death, even though he suffered from a painful illness, an abdominal aortic aneurysm, which caused severe attacks that lasted two or three days, every three or four months. In 1948, seven years before he died, he had surgery to prevent his aneurysm, “the size of a grapefruit,” from rupturing.
His health since then was very precarious, but he still published research during the 1950s and was working until the moment of his death, in 1955. This was attested to by Ralph Morse, the historic photographer for LIFE magazine who immortalized his office as it was. He had left the physicist the same day that Einstein left this world.
“I have already done my part. It’s time to go and I will do it with grace.”
Morse received a call from the LIFE editorial office telling him that Einstein had just died at Princeton Hospital. Morse went there as quickly as possible but, upon arriving at the hospital, he saw a crowd of journalists and tremendous chaos and had another idea. He bought a bottle case of whiskey and went to Einstein's office at the Institute for Advanced Studies.
“He knew that people would be reluctant to talk, but most people appreciate a bottle of alcohol, instead of money, in exchange for his help,” Morse explained in LIFE, shortly before he died. “So I managed to access the building, find the superintendent and, after offering him a bottle, he opened the office for me.”
Morse then took what is now one of the iconic images of Einstein's career. Although the photographer could not give his great exclusive – the LIFE editor of those years, Ed Thompson, decided to give it up out of respect for the family – the snapshot was published last year and shows the physicist's office full of papers.
The day he died, Einstein was working on a speech he had to give on Israeli television and took the draft to the hospital to continue writing there. Just a few hours before his death, doctors suggested trying a new experimental surgery as a last resort to extend his life. But the physicist refused: “I have already done my part. It’s time to go and I will do it with grace.” It was the last decision he made in his life.
Einstein left this world proud of his contributions and until the end, he was clear about one of his fundamental principles, which is reflected in one of his most famous quotes: “Do not try to become a successful man, better become "in a valuable man."
