“Einstein” by Walter Isaacson (post 2): Einstein’s two distinct thought processes or personalities

“Even after he had begun using words, sometime after the age of two, he developed a quirk…Whenever he had something to say, he would try it out on himself, whispering it softly until it sounded good enough to pronounce aloud. ‘Every sentence he uttered,’ his worshipful younger sister recalled, ‘no matter how routine, he repeated to himself softly, moving his lips. He had such difficulty with language that those around him feared he would never learn…

“…Einstein’s developmental problems have probably been exaggerated, perhaps even by himself, for we have some letters from his adoring grandparents saying he was just as clever and endearing as every grandchild is. But throughout his life, Einstein had a mild form of echolalia, causing him to repeat phrases to himself, two or three times, especially if they amused him…‘I very rarely think in words at all,’ he later told a psychologist. ‘A thought comes, and I may try to express it in words afterwards’ ” (1, pp. 8-9).

Comment: First, Isaacson may confuse Einstein’s palilalia (repeating his own words) with echolalia (repeating the words of others). Second, Einstein implies that he had not been merely repeating his own words, but translating his nonverbal thoughts into words. Third, his two ways of thinking—nonverbal and verbal—may have been, in effect, two personalities.

1. Walter Isaacson. Einstein: His Life and Universe. New York, Simon & Schuster Paperbacks, 2007/2008.