A Beautiful Mind

by

Sylvia Nasar

Solomon Lefschetz Character Analysis

Solomon Lefschetz is a Princeton mathematician who recruits students for the graduate program in math. He has an “entrepreneurial and energetic” presence and helps to augment Princeton’s status as a top institution for mathematicians. Like John Nash, he values “independent thinking and originality” and is known to be commanding and cantankerous. Nonetheless, he offers Princeton students the opportunity to focus on original research—a focus that helps Nash to develop his famous advances in game theory.
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Solomon Lefschetz Character Timeline in A Beautiful Mind

The timeline below shows where the character Solomon Lefschetz appears in A Beautiful Mind. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 4 – School of Genius
Genius, Morality, and Relationships Theme Icon
On Nash’s second day at Princeton, Solomon Lefschetz, a Princeton math professor, gathers the math graduate students for a meeting. An infamously grouchy... (full context)
Chapter 5 – Genius
Genius, Morality, and Relationships Theme Icon
...others believe that he doesn’t belong at the university at all, including Emil Artin. Though Lefschetz and Albert Tucker, Lefschetz’s right-hand man, defend Nash, his unpopularity with the faculty will become... (full context)
Chapter 19 – Reds
Mental Illness, Recovery, and the Quest for Knowledge Theme Icon
...of the Cambridge Communist Party. Scientists at many institutions are beginning to feel “vulnerable”; Solomon Lefschetz is identified as a “communist sympathizer.” Norman Levinson is questioned, though he refuses to name... (full context)