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A review by betsycharlene
The World As I See It by Albert Einstein
2.0
If it had been longer, the rating may have gone down, but as it was, it was short enough that it was easy to get through and painted a picture of this well-known historical figure.
My favorite parts were some surprisingly sweet sentimental letters. In particular, his ending to a group of Japanese schoolchildren: "...I, an old man, greet you... from afar and hope that your generation may some day put mine to shame." There is another reply to a young woman, "I have read about sixteen pages of your manuscript and it made me- smile." This same letter goes on to be somewhat dismissive of her plight, an attitude which seems to show up a lot in his treatment of women, but for some reason I really love that he put that dash in there for dramatic effect. There is also a section in which he discusses Americans and his admiration for them but also his discomfort in being treated as celebrity which is slightly endearing.
The book overall talks about his Socialist-leaning and pacifist ideals, and his love for his Jewish community. His feelings on disarmament are summed up pretty perfectly with this passage: "...we are concerned with an objective that cannot be reached step by step. As long as the possibility of war remains, nations will insist on being perfectly prepared militarily as they can..." He was also staunchly opposed to compulsory military service and unchecked nationalism. He was also a strong supporter of the Zionist Movement at the time and working together with Muslims in Palestine to achieve this.
I was surprised to see an opinion, printed prior to the year 1949, similar to those raised today in support of Universal Basic Income- "The fact is that since the amount of work needed to supply everyone's needs has been reduced through the improvement of technical methods, the free play of economic forces no longer produces a state of affairs in which all the available labor can find employment." This is not a new issue!
Overall, the portrait that was given here of this man lives up to a quote from the opening paragraph- "..the man who regards his own life as meaningless is not merely unfortunate but almost disqualified for life." Not an opinion in these days which I am used to hearing, and refreshing.
My favorite parts were some surprisingly sweet sentimental letters. In particular, his ending to a group of Japanese schoolchildren: "...I, an old man, greet you... from afar and hope that your generation may some day put mine to shame." There is another reply to a young woman, "I have read about sixteen pages of your manuscript and it made me- smile." This same letter goes on to be somewhat dismissive of her plight, an attitude which seems to show up a lot in his treatment of women, but for some reason I really love that he put that dash in there for dramatic effect. There is also a section in which he discusses Americans and his admiration for them but also his discomfort in being treated as celebrity which is slightly endearing.
The book overall talks about his Socialist-leaning and pacifist ideals, and his love for his Jewish community. His feelings on disarmament are summed up pretty perfectly with this passage: "...we are concerned with an objective that cannot be reached step by step. As long as the possibility of war remains, nations will insist on being perfectly prepared militarily as they can..." He was also staunchly opposed to compulsory military service and unchecked nationalism. He was also a strong supporter of the Zionist Movement at the time and working together with Muslims in Palestine to achieve this.
I was surprised to see an opinion, printed prior to the year 1949, similar to those raised today in support of Universal Basic Income- "The fact is that since the amount of work needed to supply everyone's needs has been reduced through the improvement of technical methods, the free play of economic forces no longer produces a state of affairs in which all the available labor can find employment." This is not a new issue!
Overall, the portrait that was given here of this man lives up to a quote from the opening paragraph- "..the man who regards his own life as meaningless is not merely unfortunate but almost disqualified for life." Not an opinion in these days which I am used to hearing, and refreshing.