In 1911, Marie Curie was awarded a Nobel Prize in chemistry for isolating radium salts and advancements in the study of radium. This was her second Nobel Prize, and it she was the first woman to win two Nobel prizes.
Around the time that she was awarded that prize, she was having an affair with a married man named Paul Langevin. Her husband had been dead for a few years, but Paul was married. It was extremely scandalous for a woman to have an affair, but not a problem for a man to have one. Paul only had a few publicity issues regarding the affair, but Curie had serious issues that threatened her livelihood. There was a double standard that a man could have as may affairs has he likes with minimal consequences, but if a woman had an affair with only one woman, there was a massive controversy.
This controversy cause the Nobel Prize committee to ask her to decline the award. The double standard she faced almost cost her one of the most important awards she ever won. Also, it caused her to have a massive amount of negative publicity (Goldsmith 173). Former supporters turned on her, and the press printed many accusations about her that affected her reputation greatly (Goldsmith 173). But, regardless, she still accepted the award. She believed that the scandal should not affect her career. The negativity toward her caused her to work harder toward being a successful scientist and not being what society believed she should be.
Around the time that she was awarded that prize, she was having an affair with a married man named Paul Langevin. Her husband had been dead for a few years, but Paul was married. It was extremely scandalous for a woman to have an affair, but not a problem for a man to have one. Paul only had a few publicity issues regarding the affair, but Curie had serious issues that threatened her livelihood. There was a double standard that a man could have as may affairs has he likes with minimal consequences, but if a woman had an affair with only one woman, there was a massive controversy.
This controversy cause the Nobel Prize committee to ask her to decline the award. The double standard she faced almost cost her one of the most important awards she ever won. Also, it caused her to have a massive amount of negative publicity (Goldsmith 173). Former supporters turned on her, and the press printed many accusations about her that affected her reputation greatly (Goldsmith 173). But, regardless, she still accepted the award. She believed that the scandal should not affect her career. The negativity toward her caused her to work harder toward being a successful scientist and not being what society believed she should be.
Sources for this tab:
-Goldsmith 173
-Goldsmith
-Lassieur
-aip.org
-Goldsmith 173
-Goldsmith
-Lassieur
-aip.org