Aineth Murguia Section 9 Final Essay

Aineth Murguia

Philosophy 1030

Dr. Oliver

25 April 2012

                                                                Albert Einstein More than a Genius

                Browsing the internet in my attempt to divert myself from completing school work I stumbled upon an essay by one of the most brilliant human beings I have studies. The essay is titled “The World as I  See It” by Albert Einstein. After reading it I now know with what type of philosophy I can most relate to the most. Albert Einstein was known for his genius in the world of math and physics but little known he was also a philosopher. As a mathematician and physicist he astonished many with his great laws of motion and relativity. As a philosopher he fascinated me with his views on the mysterious of the world. What I admire of Albert Einstein is his ability to explain his philosophical views in a way that is easy to understand. Unlike many of the philosophers we covered in class that had convoluting philosophical views, I was able to follow with ease the world as he saw it. Einstein was an artist not only in his science, but also in his choice of words.

                Albert Einstein was born in Germany and migrated to the United States as a refugee in 1933. As a child he was highly curious about the mysteries of science. Like many philosophers he was a curious little boy always pondering, one of the many the many capabilities of the human mind. In this essay what stole my attention was the humble approach he took in understanding the mysteries of the world. With anything I think that humbleness is one of the ways that can help in understanding any subject. This type of attitude will help people relate to what one is trying to educate and had a type of open minded approach. Albert Einstein states in his essay: I am satisfied with the mystery of life’s eternity and with the knowledge, a sense, of the marvelous structure of existence as well as the humble attempt to understand even a tiny portion of the Reason that manifest itself in nature (Living Philosophies). What I take from this is that the world is full of mysteries and our existence is a very difficult thing to understand.  To think that one of the most brilliant minds in the history of human kind has this approach towards the understanding of existence and nature furthers my position on the mystery of life. This type of reasoning reminds me of moments when I was younger and I would often think to myself: How did I get here? Far beyond understanding the biological aspects of my existence, I pondered about reason and reality. Was I really thinking what I was thinking and how real was it? Now that I look back it feels as if I have aged for ages.  In Einstein’s philosophy I find comfort in thinking that the wonders and mysteries of the world are endless.

                In this essay he also calls himself a lone traveler. He states “in the faces of all ties, I have never lost a sense of distance and a need for solitude. Like Einstein I consider myself to be somewhat of a loner. I do not want this to be mistaken that I am unsocial or deprived of social encounters I just simply like to be by myself a lot of the times. He says that he has never belonged to his family, his country or friends. To some extent I think we all belong to ourselves. In my many of my courses this semester we have studied the self interested model of society, the notion that everyone is selfish some way or another. This topic was cover in my government, anthropology, philosophy, and sociology class. In the discussion there were students that felt otherwise. My viewpoint is that we are selfish but not completely. Each day I wake up I take a leap of faith on society. I think that if everyone in the world was entirely selfish then the world we live in today would be a very different one. I recently watched a movie Contagion, where  a disease spreads and scientist nor government officials know how to stop the spread. Towards the end of the film, someone advertises a drug that is said to stop the disease. In an attempt to get the medicine the people of the town become savages and lose all self control. They break windows of local convenience stores, break out fights and fires. When I think of a world of selfish people this is the image that comes to mind.  I know it is probably a huge exaggeration but unlike many I have faith in the human race that we will not become that selfish.

                Another way that Albert Einstein has impressed me is his devotion to his work and family. In a letter he wrote to his sister while a student in 1898 he writes about the oppression he felt by the misfortune of his poor parents and his inability to do anything. He even says that it would have been better if he had never been born but is sustained by the thought that he is doing anything in his power to deprive himself of diversions that cannot be afforded ( Dukas 14). What would the world have been without Einstein? Perhaps science would be re defined. As Einstein I am a family person and many of the things that I do is for them. Although Albert Einstein was a famous scientist to me he is and should be a famous philosopher. I have learned from his readings to be humble in approaching the understanding the mysteries of the world and that I belong to myself.

Bibliography

"An Essay by Einstein -- The World As I See It." The American Institute of Physics -- Physics Publications and Resources. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Apr. 2012.

http://www.aip.org/history/einstein/essay.htm

Dukas, Helena, and Banesh Hoffman. Albert Einstein:The Human Side. New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1979. Print.