Jean Tatlock
Encyclopedia
Jean Frances Tatlock M.D. (February 21, 1914 – January 5, 1944), was an American
psychiatrist, physician, and a member of the Communist Party
. She is most noted for her romantic relationship with Manhattan Project
scientific leader J. Robert Oppenheimer.
(1876–1948) and Marjorie Fenton Tatlock. Her father, who had a Ph.D. from Harvard University
, was a noted and acclaimed professor of English at the University of California, Berkeley
; an Old English philologist
; an expert on Geoffrey Chaucer
and English plays, poems, and Elizabethan era literature; and author of approximately 60 books on those subjects (The Complete Poetical Works of Geoffrey Chaucer, The Mind and Art of Chaucer). John Tatlock was a professor at Stanford and Harvard before returning to the Bay Area at UC Berkeley. Jean had an older brother named Hugh.
When Tatlock was a graduate student in psychology
at Stanford University
in 1936, and Oppenheimer was a professor of physics
at University of California, Berkeley, she began seeing him. They met through his landlady, Mary Ellen Washburn, when Washburn held a fund raiser for communist backed Spanish Loyalist
(also known as the Republicans). The couple started dating and had a passionate relationship, they almost married on two separate occasions. Tatlock is credited with introducing Oppenheimer to radical politics during the late 1930s, and to people involved with, or sympathetic to the Communist Party
or related groups (including Rudy Lambert and Dr. Thomas Addis).
She graduated from the Stanford University Medical School with the class of 1941. Tatlock became a physician in the Department of Psychiatry at Mount Zion Hospital (now the University of California, San Francisco Medical Center).
Oppenheimer's association with her friends was used as evidence against him during his 1954 security hearing.
While some historians believe that Oppenheimer had an extramarital affair with Tatlock while he was working on the Manhattan Project, others assert he met with Tatlock only one time, in mid-June 1943 (June 14–15), after he was picked to head the laboratory. At that meeting she told him that she still loved him and wanted to be with him. After spending that night together (while U.S. Army agents, waiting in the street outside, had them under surveillance), he never saw her again. She committed suicide a little more than six and half months after their meeting.
Tatlock suffered from severe depression
, was being treated at Mount Zion, and was found dead in January 1944, in her San Francisco apartment, at 1405 Montgomery Street, with an unsigned suicide
note. At the time of her death she was under surveillance by the FBI. There has been, at times, speculation as to whether her death was truly a suicide or not, as it has some suspicious circumstances surrounding it, but in their review of all of the arguments for and against such a scenario, historians Kai Bird and Martin Sherwin conclude that there is simply not any conclusive evidence of foul play.
In a letter to Major General Kenneth D. Nichols, General Manager, United States Atomic Energy Commission, dated March 4, 1954, Oppenheimer stated her and their association as follows:
Tatlock also introduced Oppenheimer to the poetry of John Donne
, and historian Gregg Herken believes that he named the first test of a nuclear weapon
"Trinity" in reference to Donne’s poem, as a tribute to Tatlock.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
psychiatrist, physician, and a member of the Communist Party
Communist party
A political party described as a Communist party includes those that advocate the application of the social principles of communism through a communist form of government...
. She is most noted for her romantic relationship with Manhattan Project
Manhattan Project
The Manhattan Project was a research and development program, led by the United States with participation from the United Kingdom and Canada, that produced the first atomic bomb during World War II. From 1942 to 1946, the project was under the direction of Major General Leslie Groves of the US Army...
scientific leader J. Robert Oppenheimer.
Biography
She was born to Dr. John Strong Perry TatlockJohn Strong Perry Tatlock
John Strong Perry Tatlock was an American literary scholar and expert on Geoffrey Chaucer. Tatlock was born in Stamford, Connecticut, in February 1876. He attended Harvard University, receiving his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1896 and his Ph.D. in 1903. He began his academic career at the...
(1876–1948) and Marjorie Fenton Tatlock. Her father, who had a Ph.D. from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
, was a noted and acclaimed professor of English at the University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
; an Old English philologist
Philology
Philology is the study of language in written historical sources; it is a combination of literary studies, history and linguistics.Classical philology is the philology of Greek and Classical Latin...
; an expert on Geoffrey Chaucer
Geoffrey Chaucer
Geoffrey Chaucer , known as the Father of English literature, is widely considered the greatest English poet of the Middle Ages and was the first poet to have been buried in Poet's Corner of Westminster Abbey...
and English plays, poems, and Elizabethan era literature; and author of approximately 60 books on those subjects (The Complete Poetical Works of Geoffrey Chaucer, The Mind and Art of Chaucer). John Tatlock was a professor at Stanford and Harvard before returning to the Bay Area at UC Berkeley. Jean had an older brother named Hugh.
When Tatlock was a graduate student in psychology
Psychology
Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...
at Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
in 1936, and Oppenheimer was a professor of physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
at University of California, Berkeley, she began seeing him. They met through his landlady, Mary Ellen Washburn, when Washburn held a fund raiser for communist backed Spanish Loyalist
Second Spanish Republic
The Second Spanish Republic was the government of Spain between April 14 1931, and its destruction by a military rebellion, led by General Francisco Franco....
(also known as the Republicans). The couple started dating and had a passionate relationship, they almost married on two separate occasions. Tatlock is credited with introducing Oppenheimer to radical politics during the late 1930s, and to people involved with, or sympathetic to the Communist Party
Communist party
A political party described as a Communist party includes those that advocate the application of the social principles of communism through a communist form of government...
or related groups (including Rudy Lambert and Dr. Thomas Addis).
She graduated from the Stanford University Medical School with the class of 1941. Tatlock became a physician in the Department of Psychiatry at Mount Zion Hospital (now the University of California, San Francisco Medical Center).
Oppenheimer's association with her friends was used as evidence against him during his 1954 security hearing.
While some historians believe that Oppenheimer had an extramarital affair with Tatlock while he was working on the Manhattan Project, others assert he met with Tatlock only one time, in mid-June 1943 (June 14–15), after he was picked to head the laboratory. At that meeting she told him that she still loved him and wanted to be with him. After spending that night together (while U.S. Army agents, waiting in the street outside, had them under surveillance), he never saw her again. She committed suicide a little more than six and half months after their meeting.
Tatlock suffered from severe depression
Clinical depression
Major depressive disorder is a mental disorder characterized by an all-encompassing low mood accompanied by low self-esteem, and by loss of interest or pleasure in normally enjoyable activities...
, was being treated at Mount Zion, and was found dead in January 1944, in her San Francisco apartment, at 1405 Montgomery Street, with an unsigned suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
note. At the time of her death she was under surveillance by the FBI. There has been, at times, speculation as to whether her death was truly a suicide or not, as it has some suspicious circumstances surrounding it, but in their review of all of the arguments for and against such a scenario, historians Kai Bird and Martin Sherwin conclude that there is simply not any conclusive evidence of foul play.
In a letter to Major General Kenneth D. Nichols, General Manager, United States Atomic Energy Commission, dated March 4, 1954, Oppenheimer stated her and their association as follows:
Tatlock also introduced Oppenheimer to the poetry of John Donne
John Donne
John Donne 31 March 1631), English poet, satirist, lawyer, and priest, is now considered the preeminent representative of the metaphysical poets. His works are notable for their strong and sensual style and include sonnets, love poetry, religious poems, Latin translations, epigrams, elegies, songs,...
, and historian Gregg Herken believes that he named the first test of a nuclear weapon
Nuclear testing
Nuclear weapons tests are experiments carried out to determine the effectiveness, yield and explosive capability of nuclear weapons. Throughout the twentieth century, most nations that have developed nuclear weapons have tested them...
"Trinity" in reference to Donne’s poem, as a tribute to Tatlock.