The man who knew Infinity: A Life of the Genius Ramanujan: Robert Knaigel

Can literature be wedded to mathematics? Yes, it can and it can be done so most admirably. Mr. Knaigel has stuck gold with this book. The best biographer that I have ever read has got to be Issac Deutscher, whose three volume biography of Trotsky and Stalin: A Political Biography has , to my mind, redefined the art of writing biographies. Well, this one comes close…very close. A biography about a mathematician and that too of someone with the unparalleled intellect of Ramanujan is a daunting task. Here the book succeeds colossally.
Formally, the language is kept simple and yet probing, with chapters often ending with a rejuvenating question, much like a high octane political thriller, hell its tough enough incorporating the mathematics of Ramanujan to expect the reader to delve in the intricacies of the language. The effort at succinct language, written in a wondrously evocative style is the best medium for scientific biographies. The structure is taught and no less attention is given to Hardy, as indeed it must be given, to understand the phenomenon of Ramanujan. The book does not shy away from the math, and indeed it can’t, for this is what the book is all about, the great genius of Ramanujan. Lucidly stated and explained, the theorems of Ramanujan and the Riemann’s hypothesis are given their due time and space. This is a masterstroke. Too often scientific biographies have the tendency to teeter too much towards the scientific or the personal side, this book has broken that chain and how! The description of the bygone Madras would do a literary author proud. I could almost see and smell Ramanujan’s Madras. The cold English weather with the looming and then cascading war is brilliantly captured.
Realistically too this is an unmitigated triumph. The picture of the starved genius, hesitant and yet strangely confident is brought out quite well. The snobbishness and the internationalism of Hardy are also laid down. Perhaps a bit more success is achieved with the image of Hardy, but then the effort of a westerner to understand and portray an India aeons ago will have some draw backs. Does it describe the workers? No, it does not but that’s not the main realistic endeavor of this book. It describes the bourgeoisie left leaning scholar Hardy and the Brahmin genius Ramanujan as realistically as possible. The quirks and the class habits of both, sometimes one is left to wonder which one’s is more puzzling, are exceptionally well documented. The war and its atmosphere, the cultural shock and of course as is wont of two of the greatest mathematician of this century, the professional pride and competitive spirit are also exhibited most charmingly. The effect is startling, overwhelming and one that realistically displays the life, times and the genius of these two extraordinary men. And last but perhaps the best is the almost photocopy like reproduction of the Indian domestic Indian scene, the clash between a child bride, timid and frightened and the overbearing mother-in-law. Kudos to Mr. Knaigel for capturing this most Indian of traits prevalent frequently then and still now.
To be fair, a biography does not need to assessed on a normal or natural case (unless of course like Deutscher, it tries to invoke some explanation or some meaning to be derived from the biography). To a large extent Ramanujan will always escape a normal analysis, a man about whom nothing much else is known except his amazing theorems, will always be a hard subject to explain on a natural scale and this work does not attempt it too seriously. There is no attempt made to even explain Hardy’s behavioral traits, beyond of course the obvious ones resulting from his glaring bourgeoisie class consciousness. Ramanujan will always remain a mystery for any author, on the normal scale. Science has not progressed far enough to determine the source of his genius. Naturally the only point that has been made and is really worth making is the rottenness of the educational system. The system then in India and Britain by extension is justifiably thrashed. It would, I guess give the author immense pleasure if this book can open the pedantic teacher’s eye to one raw, scintillating talent that is not made for the confines of marks and examinations.
For fans of math and for fans of Ramanujan (I undoubtedly was already one), this is must reading. This book is not just a good biography, it is a good novel. If there’s a better scientific biography, I am still to read it, period.