Forgiveness doesn't mean that certain behavior was ok. Feynman was a very complicated figure. I find the stories he wrote about going to the strip club in Surely you're joking, Mr. Feynman quite disturbing. He quite explicitly dehumanizes the women who work at the club when he realizes that buying them a few drinks isn't enough for sex. He was in his 60s when he published that book. I know that times were different then, but it was rotten when it was published and hasn't aged well. I expect better from someone with his intellectual prowess.
I also find that whenever I read Feynman or watch one of his lectures, it always seems as though the real subject is Feynman himself. In spite of his humble everyman from Brooklyn persona, he always seems intent on reminding you that he is smarter than you are. He always seems to know better than all the idiots out there. I find it very off-putting.
At the same time, I can respect his contributions to physics and his personal genius. He was also clever and quite charismatic. But I wouldn't give my children a copy of Surely you're joking...
> He quite explicitly dehumanizes the women who work at the club when he realizes that buying them a few drinks isn't enough for sex.
You fault him for not knowing "there's no sex in the Champaign room"
> I expect better from someone with his intellectual prowess.
I recommend that you don't look into the sex lives of famous and admirable thinkers through out history.
> He always seems to know better than all the idiots out there.
He's a working class guy as am I. This is an essential conceit and source of humor for many of us. We take pleasure in out-smarting the our so-called superiors.
> You fault him for not knowing "there's no sex in the Champaign room"
No, I fault him for being an entitled asshole.
> I recommend that you don't look into the sex lives of famous and admirable thinkers through out history.
The greater the man, the greater the shadow. That is why I am reluctant to admire _any_ great person. You are absolutely right that the more you dig, the more you learn how flawed everyone is. My problem is that there is an uncritical deification of Feynman that seeks to whitewash the aspects of his personality that were far less than admirable.
> We take pleasure in out-smarting the our so-called superiors.
And thus mirror exactly the behavior that you don't like about them.
To me, Feynman epitomizes smart but not wise. I cannot hold a candle to him when it comes to understanding the physical laws of nature, but almost nothing I have ever heard from him actually helps me a better human, which is not true of some other great thinkers. YMMV of course.
I also find that whenever I read Feynman or watch one of his lectures, it always seems as though the real subject is Feynman himself. In spite of his humble everyman from Brooklyn persona, he always seems intent on reminding you that he is smarter than you are. He always seems to know better than all the idiots out there. I find it very off-putting.
At the same time, I can respect his contributions to physics and his personal genius. He was also clever and quite charismatic. But I wouldn't give my children a copy of Surely you're joking...