EINSTEIN, Albert (1879-1955). Autograph letter signed twice (\"A. Einstein\" and...

EINSTEIN, Albert (1879-1955). Autograph letter signed twice ("A. Einstein" and "Papa") to Eduard Einstein, 17 November 1931.

In German. Two pages, 219 x 275mm (some light soiling to margins, marginal tears not affecting text).

Einstein offers a glowing review of his son's writing on psychoanalysis while offering observations on his own mentality, and in particular his "tenacious obsession for certain problems which is almost without equal." He compliments Eduard's of essays on psychology and despite his uncertainty as to how "significant they are" he read them with "great pleasure." Eduard, who was studying medicine at the University of Zurich with the intention of becoming a psychiatrist, was a devotee of Sigmund Freud—a belief not shared by his father. Nevertheless, his son's essays prompted Einstein to determine for himself whether he belonged "to the realm of the compulsive character or the neurotic one" and concluded that he was "certainly not restrained and did damn little to restrain myself whenever it was not a matter of emotions between people" — a frank admission of his own difficulty in expressing empathy for his loved ones. As to what drove his thinking, he believed it "came half from a passion for beauty and half as an escape from the empty and routine experience of everyday life." With that said, he claimed "a tenacious obsession for certain problems which is almost without equal" in large part because the problems that consumed him "will only let themselves be schematized by the use of extreme force." He is especially fond of the fact that his son gave primacy to "innate nature" rather than "experience"—which corresponded with his own belief that his son's deteriorating mental state was hereditary (from his mother's side) rather than due to any environmental factors.

He then informs his "beloved rascal" ("Mein geliebter Schlinge") of his travel plans for his second winter at Caltech ("Next week I am America bound") and has made arrangements so his "existence is completely international in nature" which offered him "the greatest amount of freedom." Here Einstein is alluding to the question of whether to resign his post at the University of Berlin, a decision he would finalize the following month.

Circling back to psychoanalysis, he jokingly asks "How are things with your little Oedipus complex (in case you have one)? Does the clever and experienced girl student still have you on a string? Are you taking to heart my fatherly advice about love?" Needless to say, Eduard was very close to his mother, so it would be safe to assume that there was no Oedipus complex in play. However, it was an affair with an older woman that ended badly that prompted Eduard's mental collapse the previous year. As a solution, Einstein suggested that his son engage in a dalliance with a younger "plaything" (Isaacson, Einstein, 366-67).

Einstein's letter is prefaced with another letter, declining an invitation to speak before the Student Club at the University of Zurich, written for the benefit of his son to copy and send to the club's chairman. For a son eager to see his mostly absent father, it must have proved a great disappointment. Provenance: Christie's, 7 June 2000, lot 32.