Heisenberg's Influence In The Play Copenhagen By Michael Frayn

Just as with Newton and motion or Einstein and relativity, when the name Werner Heisenberg is brought up in academic discussion it is synonymous with uncertainty due to his contributions towards quantum mechanics and his uncertainty principle. While many are familiar with his equations and work in physics, many are not as aware of how his contributions and character had enormous consequences in the outcome of World War II. There are many small tactical decisions and results that had huge impacts on the success or failure of the German war effort, and Heisenberg was in a position of great influence towards what could have been a war dominating advantage. While the play Copenhagen, by Michael Frayn, is essentially about the great uncertainty surrounding what took place in 1941 in Copenhagen, it also demonstrates the implications of uncertainty with regards to Heisenberg’s character and …show more content…
This dilemma was an enormous issue for Heisenberg since he held a great deal of loyalty towards the nationalistic concept of Germany and fellow Germans, but had little agreement with the Nazi ideology that out casted many of those whom he considered the best of friends and colleagues. There is a lot of evidence suggesting that he was not in line with Nazi ideology; primarily this is shown by the fact that he even met with Niels Bohr at all in Copenhagen since it was inherently risky for him and any staunch Nazi would not interact with Jews or even acknowledge the science they created. There is much further evidence of this considering that many labeled him a “white Jew” for sympathizing with and teaching about Jewish scientists, and he was even investigated by the SS for such things. So while Heisenberg clearly wasn’t a Nazi supporter in the way that Philipp Lenard was, the question is raised as to why he stayed in Germany and continued to do work that was beneficial to the Nazi