A Beautiful Mind by Sylvia Nasar

A Beautiful Mind

by

Sylvia Nasar

1.) A.) A Beautiful Mind is a biography based on the events that happened

to a mathematical genius John Forbes Nash Jr. He was invited to go to Princeton University on only one term, and it was to create a truly original idea based on using mathematics. Once he is enrolled in Princeton he is looked at as a social outcast. Once after originating his idea of what other mathematicians thought was unsolvable, he shocked the mathematical world by becoming an overall genius. After struggling with dellusions he was slowly losing his mind. He believed he was working for the Department of Defense doing top secret work, decoding messages from the Russians. Nash also had in his mind that the Russians were after him, so he thought him and his wife, Alicia, had to keep a low profile. Soon, he completly breaks down and he thinks he his being held against his will by the Russians, when in reality he is schizophrenic. It was very hard for John to overcome the dellusions and see reality from his dreamylike world. Finally, after being released from the hospital, John had a few more breakdowns, but he soon sees that he had to cope with these dellusions for the rest of his life. Nash, askes for a second chance at teaching and soon starts up againt at MIT. He wins everyone over with his extraordinary original idea, and he was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. John Forbes Nash Jr. was an incredible mathematician

who did ended up winning the Nobel Peace Prize and still taught his students.

B.) One subplot of this novel is how John Nash is not only a mathematical genius but he is also schizophrenic, this adds another twist to the novel. This makes the book very interesting, because you don't know who is real and who is not, until the other characters reveal that. I would keep this subplot, because it makes the story a little different, and you really have to pay attention to detail. This really keeps the reader interested in continuing the book.

2.) A.) John Nash is an average looking man. Intellectually is a genius, a mathematical genius. John is not a very social person, considering he is dellusional and has friends who aren't real. Throughout the novel he becomes friends with some people, but other than that he wasn't a very social person. Emotionally John is very unstable, he has a hard time coping with reality.

Alicia is very femine and cares a lot for John. Alicia was one of John's students earlier on in the novel. She attempted to solve one of his math problems. She is