The Other Einstein: A novel

The title of this novel immediately positions the central character, a woman named Mileva, as the “other.” Lost to history, Mileva is the “other” Einstein, not the world-renowned figure. The title is important symbolically because Einstein is both a person and a way of being. In Benedict’s reader’s contemporary world, calling someone an “Einstein” implies, sometimes sarcastically, that they are extremely intelligent. Thus, Mileva, who is extremely intelligent, is an “Einstein” both literally in that she married Einstein and figuratively in terms of her great intelligence. This title is important because it reveals her othering as a female scientist whose husband took credit for her contributions.

Mileva’s empowerment in a patriarchal society begins at a young age. Her father notices her natural curiosity and deep intelligence. In an unorthodox move, he pushes her to pursue an education. In the 19th century, girls were raised to fulfill roles in the home as mothers, wives, cooks, and cleaners, but Mileva found an ally in her father, He used his influence to ensure her admission into male-only spaces of education. Her mother had no choice but to agree because of her own status as a woman in the 19th century and her belief that Mileva would not be able to get married and have children because of her disability.