Sophia Kovalevskaya's love formula, or the mistake that cost the great mathematician woman's happiness

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

It's no secret that love in a woman's life is the most important aspect of her existence and self-realization. There is no woman without love, regardless of what her level of intelligence is. Well known to the whole world female professor of mathematics Sophia Kovalevskaya all my life I tried to calculate my own formula for love, the formula for ordinary female happiness. But it bypassed her. She, as a mathematician, often wondered: in what action her mistake was made. To find her, you need to go back and analyze what and when she did wrong …

The Unchildish Feelings of a 13-Year-Old Teenage Girl

For the first time, Sophia fell in love as an adult, being a 13-year-old girl. The subject of her love was the progressive writer, editor-in-chief of the "Epoch" magazine, and in the past a convict - Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky. Yes, the same Dostoevsky … Once the elder sister of the girl Anna submitted several of her stories to the publishing house, and then invited Dostoevsky to visit. Young Sonya was simply fascinated by the writer and fell in love with him without memory.

However, in turn, the object of her passion was madly in love and dreamed of her older sister Anna, a promising writer. When Anyuta, for some unknown reason, rejected the advances of Fyodor Mikhailovich, Sonya was perplexed and rejoiced at the same time: Dostoevsky is free! But Fyodor Mikhailovich did not see a woman in Sonya, he always treated her only as a sweet child. He could not even think and did not try to look into the depths of her soul, so sincerely suffering from love for him. Sonya was very worried about this, but what could she do? I had to put up with it. And the feelings cooled down over time, leaving in the memory the bitter taste of shed tears for unrequited love.

By the age of 18, Sophia had transformed from an awkward teenager into a charming girl with gentle, soft features and incredibly expressive black eyes. The doll's face of the girl did not correspond at all to her intellect, in which a mature analytical "male" mind was clearly manifested. Among other things, she was distinguished by her extraordinary naturalness and ease of communication, she was sincere, unconstrained, without pretense, without stiffness.

A fictitious marriage that brought love and bitterness to loss

The second man in Sophia's life was 26-year-old Vladimir Onufrievich Kovalevsky, whom she also met thanks to her older sister. Anna, naturally distinguished by a lively mind, energy, in her youth was subject to fashionable ideas about female emancipation. She always dreamed of breaking free from parental care. In addition, under the influence of Dostoevsky's progressive views, the sisters were carried away by the idea of emancipation and decided to continue their studies abroad.

However, at that time it was not at all easy. Therefore, the girl began to look for a suitable party for concluding a fictitious marriage. In the 60s of the 19th century, this was very popular. Progressive-minded girls took such a step to go abroad with her husband for further studies at universities. In that era, studying at Russian universities was a taboo for them. And formal marriages gave them complete freedom. Anyuta aspired to her, inciting her younger sister to the same marriage.

A candidate for the role of a fictitious husband, in the person of Vladimir Kovalevsky, the owner of a book publishing house, as well as a paleontologist, was found quite quickly. However, having met the bride's sister, the groom suddenly changed his mind. He liked a sweet talented girl who was the complete opposite of her older sister, an adventurer. He decided that it was Sophia who was more worthy of "freedom" and education. The marriage, despite the doubts of the parents, was concluded, and Sophia with her fictitious husband went abroad. Together with the newlyweds, Anna also went abroad.

Having achieved incredible success in Europe, at the age of 24, having become a master of philosophy, and a few years later, having defended her doctoral dissertation in mathematics, Sophia practically remained unclaimed, because even in progressive Germany a woman could not count on a teaching position. Faced with the prospect of unemployment and poverty, the Kovalevskys decided to return to Russia.

After the death of their father, the sisters received a considerable inheritance, which allowed them to taste all the delights of life. Having completely forgotten about her youthful ideals, Anna completely abandoned literature, Sophia - science, and both embarked on the cycle of secular life, from which they had become so unaccustomed, living abroad. The sisters shone at balls, visited theaters and salons. In her apartment, Sophia changed the environment, bought chic outfits, planned a luxurious life with the money that her husband's construction business was supposed to bring, a fictitious marriage with which grew into a real one.

Having agreed to intimacy, finally, Sophia appreciated all the delights of married life - she liked the role of a wife. And in 1878 a daughter was born in the Kovalevsky family. Sophia was completely absorbed in the baby, she was carried away by caring for her with the same dedication with which she had previously been fond of theater, and even earlier - mathematical calculations. It seemed that this is female happiness … But it only seemed …

Husband ruin and suicide

However, Sophia quickly lost interest in her little daughter, starting to miss scientific research. She came up with the idea of organizing the Higher Courses for Women, which she soon selflessly took up, putting all her energy and strength into them. But she was not allowed to teach there.

To all the troubles, Vladimir turned out to be a bad businessman, and soon all their joint property passed to creditors. Oddly enough, Sophia took this fact rather calmly, unlike her husband, who could not endure such a blow. And no matter how much his wife tried to persuade him to return to science (he was once fond of paleontology and had a degree), nothing came of it. But rumors began to reach Sophia that her husband was carried away by some woman. This she certainly could not stand. Having rolled her husband a scene of jealousy and leaving her daughter in the care of a friend, she boarded the train and drove off to Berlin. And that turned out to be her big mistake. Solving the problem, which was at stake with family happiness, turned out to be more difficult than she thought.

In Berlin, she plunged headlong into scientific work and social life, completely forgetting about her loser husband and little daughter. But one day, in 1883, terrible news came from Russia, which shook Sophia to the depths of her soul - Vladimir Kovalevsky committed suicide. Until the end of her life, she blamed herself for his death, she could not forgive that she had left him so thoughtlessly.

Recognition, glory and - loneliness

In less than a year, Kovalevskaya will finally get the long-awaited teaching position at Stockholm University. On January 30, 1884, she gave her first lecture there and immediately entered the circle of the most famous mathematicians of her time. She will amaze venerable scientists with her extraordinary mind and breadth of knowledge. Taking fame for granted, she was deeply unhappy in her loneliness. Then Sophia decided that she was not intended for love and family, so she must devote herself entirely to science. Soon she took her daughter from Russia, and life began to improve.

Last love and death

In a moment of complete despair because of his loneliness, HE appeared in the life of Professor Sonya, tall, handsome, intelligent, self-confident, full of strength and energy, Maxim Kovalevsky, (ironically Sophia's namesake) immensely loving life and women. And especially women, and all at once. It was he who became the third and last love of 38-year-old Sofia Vasilievna Kovalevskaya. He adored her childish impracticality, loved her for her brilliant mind, for fame and general admiration, as well as for a violent passion for him. He loved literally everything about her. True, not for long.

At the beginning, Maxim's relationship with Sonya was inseparable, the woman devoted all her time to him. However, she soon began to realize that his time was distributed among many women. Once again, disappointed in love and resigned to her share, she rushed to her only true friend - a mathematician. Then Maxim began to be jealous, begging her to return. She naively returned - and history repeated itself over again. For three whole years she incinerated her soul in these relations, and at the meeting of the New, in 1891 in Genoa, she uttered the fatal words that one of them would not survive this year. And he, either jokingly or seriously, made her the offer she had been waiting for so long.

Returning from Italy to Stockholm, Kovalevskaya thought about the upcoming wedding with girlish trepidation. But on the way it got very cold and Sophia caught a cold. A slight malaise was replaced by severe inflammation. The woman's weakened body was unable to resist the disease. She died on January 29, 1891. She was only 41 …

This amazing woman, who managed to climb to the pinnacle of fame in the field of science, solving incredibly complex mathematical problems, was never able to create a formula for female happiness … And you involuntarily ask yourself: Does this happiness exist at all? Or is it a mirage?