# Max Gottlieb — Arrowsmith character guide > Max Gottlieb in Arrowsmith by Sinclair Lewis. **Role:** major **Also known as:** Dr. Gottlieb, Gottlieb, Professor Gottlieb, old Gottlieb, Max **First appearance:** 0003-i ## Snapshot A brilliant, pessimistic bacteriologist whose cult of pure science shapes Martin's ideals and haunts him long after the mentorship ends. ## Who they are Gottlieb is the exacting German-Jewish scientist whose pessimistic view of the human intellect Martin absorbs even as he longs for progress and meaning. The death of the Gottlieb-cult leaves Martin unconsciously seeking a new passion, which he finds in Sondelius's war on disease. Gottlieb's example—rigorous, uncompromising, and ultimately isolating—defines the standard against which Martin measures every later compromise. ## Relationships ### [Martin Arrowsmith](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/characters/martin_arrowsmith) _professional_ Martin deeply admires and is mentored by the brilliant, demanding scientist Max Gottlieb, who shapes his dedication to pure research. ### [Ed Blassner](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/characters/ed_blassner) _professional_ Ed Blassner and Max Gottlieb are colleagues at the McGurk Institute, with Blassner often mocking Gottlieb's intense scientific purity. ### [Martin Arrowsmith](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/characters/martin_arrowsmith) _professional_ Martin deeply admires and is mentored by the brilliant, demanding scientist Max Gottlieb, who shapes his dedication to pure research. ### [Martin Arrowsmith](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/characters/martin_arrowsmith) _professional_ Martin deeply admires and is mentored by the brilliant, demanding scientist Max Gottlieb, who shapes his dedication to pure research. ### [Ed Blassner](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/characters/ed_blassner) _professional_ Ed Blassner and Max Gottlieb are colleagues at the McGurk Institute, with Blassner often mocking Gottlieb's intense scientific purity. ## In the story ### [Chapter II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/ii) Professor of bacteriology, a mysterious and aloof figure; discussed at the party and glimpsed by Martin later that night. ### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/iii) Gottlieb dismisses Martin's request to take bacteriology early, emphasizing the need for patience and physical chemistry. ### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/iii) Professor Gottlieb delivers a lecture on the scientific method, emphasizing the importance of pure research and exacting standards. ### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/i) Mentioned as the author of scientific papers that inspire Martin's vision of meaningful experimentation. ### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/iii) Admired by Martin as an ideal of pure research; described as alone, not caring, working all night to get to the bottom of things. ### [IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/iv) Gottlieb is mentioned as a symbol of pure scientific research, contrasted with the commercialism of other doctors. Martin admires him, while Madeline criticizes his shabby appearance. ### [VII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/vii) Martin plans to work with him next year and carries his book Immunology during the summer; he is one of the few people Martin holds affection for. ### [IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/iv) Gottlieb delivers a passionate lecture on the purity of scientific research, influencing Martin deeply. ### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/i) Professor Gottlieb performs the anthrax inoculation with precise technique, reflecting on his past and the current class's lack of reverence. ### [II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/ii) Demonstrates an experiment with unerring fingers, inspiring Martin. ### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/iii) Performs the necropsy on the guinea pigs with ritualistic precision, cauterizing the heart and drawing blood; stalks silently behind the students as they examine slides. ### [IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/iv) Discovers Martin in the lab, praises his craftsmanship, shares a midnight meal and personal stories, and offers guidance. ### [V](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/v) Gottlieb's influence on Martin is evident as Martin struggles between pure science and the commercial pressures of medicine. ### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/i) Mentioned as the source of Martin's insistence on using the term 'control' in experiments. ### [V](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/v) Referenced as a contrast to Madeline's superficiality; Martin thinks of Gottlieb's 'dark patience' during his argument with Madeline. ### [VII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/vii) Appoints Martin as undergraduate assistant for the coming year after Martin leads the class in bacteriology. ### [II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/ii) Gottlieb tests Martin by initially scolding him for questioning dogma, then beams with approval when Martin insists on trusting his observations; calls him 'Martin' as a rare honor. ### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/iii) Sends Martin to the hospital to collect a strain of meningococcus. ### [IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/iv) Martin's mentor; he scolds Martin for being distracted in the lab. ### [VII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/vii) Professor Gottlieb represents the ideal of pure research and scientific integrity, inspiring Martin. ### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/i) Referenced as someone to whom Martin talks honestly, alongside Leora and his own self. ### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/i) Martin assists Gottlieb in his work and occasionally visits his cottage. ### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/iii) Impatient with Martin's lack of progress in research, criticizes his notes. ### [II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/ii) Fires Martin as assistant after a confrontation over rabbits; later defends him to Dean Silva. ### [Chapter X](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/x) Gottlieb represents the ideal of pure scientific research, which Martin admires. ### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/i) Referenced as a figure whose pure research ideals Martin begins to reject. ### [IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/iv) Mentioned as a figure Martin is moving away from; they exchange embarrassed bows on campus. ### [Chapter XI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/xi) Mentioned as the sender of a letter offering Martin a research position. ### [Chapter II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/ii) Seen briefly on the street, looking worried and ill; his presence stirs Martin's longing for research. ### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/i) Introduced as a ruined but authentic scientist, devoted to pure research, living in poverty, and alienated from his colleagues. ### [II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/ii) Depicted as a distracted but not unkind husband and father, deeply absorbed in his scientific work, which causes tension with his son. ### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/iii) Aware of Martin's devotion, plans to mentor him, but is disappointed by Martin's carelessness and personal affairs, eventually considering him a traitor. ### [IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/iv) Attempts to reform medical education, is charged and dismissed from the University of Winnemac, then faces personal crisis as his wife falls ill. ### [XIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/xiii) Gottlieb is referenced as Martin's mentor, representing the ideal of pure research that Martin longs for. ### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/i) In a state of mental distress, Gottlieb abandons his teaching career and reaches out to a pharmaceutical firm he had previously denounced, accepting their offer. ### [II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/ii) Gottlieb leaves his academic post to join the Dawson Hunziker Company, a commercial firm, and arrives in Pittsburgh with his family, feeling rejuvenated. ### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/iii) Gottlieb joins the Dawson Hunziker Company, achieves a breakthrough in synthesizing antitoxin, but faces pressure to commercialize it. He begins to equivocate and prepare for disaster, while also dealing with his son's theft and his wife's death. ### [IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/iv) Gottlieb is weary and contemplative, supported by his daughter Miriam, and ultimately accepts a position at the McGurk Institute. ### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/i) Referenced as an immunologist whose work Martin Arrowsmith admires and discusses with preachers. ### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/iii) Referenced as the mentor who taught Martin to improvise laboratory equipment. ### [V](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/v) Mentioned by Martin and praised by Sondelius as the greatest spirit of science. ### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/i) Referenced by Martin as someone who saw his potential. ### [II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/ii) Writes a remarkable letter of recommendation for Martin. ### [II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/ii) Mentioned as a scientific ideal that contrasts with Pickerbaugh's approach. ### [Chapter III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/iii) Referenced by Leora as a model of a true scientist who never wastes time, contrasting with Martin's current path. ### [XXI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/xxi) Gottlieb is Martin's mentor and a symbol of pure scientific ideals, though he is now aging and less influential at the institute. ### [II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/ii) Referenced in Martin's internal reflection as the embodiment of clean, cold, unfriendly truth and the loyalty of dissent. ### [XXII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/xxii) Gottlieb is a senior scientist at the institute, serving as a mentor figure to Martin and embodying the ideal of pure scientific research. ### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/i) Mentioned as a scientist far less known than Pickerbaugh, highlighting the disparity between commercial success and pure research. ### [II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/ii) Mentioned by Martin in a nostalgic longing for the world of research. ### [XXIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/xxiii) Gottlieb represents the ideal of pure science that Martin aspires to, though he is largely absent from the institute's daily politics. ### [XXIV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/xxiv) Gottlieb serves as Martin's mentor, advocating for pure, uncompromising research. ### [Chapter I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/i) Mentioned as having synthesized antibodies in vitro at the McGurk Institute, inspiring Martin's scientific longing. ### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/i) Mentioned as seeming an 'aged fusser' in the presence of the great surgeons; his phrase 'men of measured merriment' is adopted by Martin and Leora. ### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/iii) Writes to Martin praising his paper and offering him a laboratory at the McGurk Institute. ### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/i) Aging but still fiercely dedicated, Gottlieb critiques Martin's work and expounds on the religion of a scientist. ### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/iii) Mentioned as the source of Martin's excitement about the McGurk Institute. ### [IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/iv) Mentioned as having recommended Martin to the Institute and as a colleague of Wickett. ### [V](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/v) Found his own serenity; his evening conversations inspire Martin to pursue new experiments. ### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/i) Guides Martin's research, showing him notebooks and explaining complex immunity concepts. ### [II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/ii) Arrives at the Institute and forms a friendship with Ross McGurk, but clashes with Capitola McGurk. ### [IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/iv) Insults Dr. Sholtheis at lunch and is part of an independent faction with Terry Wickett and Dr. Yeo. ### [V](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/v) Summons Martin and, with Terry Wickett, pushes him to pursue deeper scientific fundamentals. ### [VII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/vii) Gottlieb is devastated by the war and the anti-German sentiment in America, feeling betrayed by the country he admired. He becomes withdrawn, trusting only Miriam, Martin, and Ross McGurk. ### [VIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/viii) Martin seeks him out for reverent listening, but Martin's research eventually makes him forget even Gottlieb. ### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/i) Mentioned as the source of the broth Martin steals from his private supply; Martin also thinks of Gottlieb's emphasis on new observations. ### [Chapter II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/ii) Mentors Martin with rigorous scientific standards, rebuking him for allowing clinical trials before completing research. ### [XXIX](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/xxix) Gottlieb, though aging and less present, remains a symbol of scientific integrity and the path Martin wishes to follow. ### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/i) Supports Martin's cautious approach, informs him of D'Herelle's priority, and encourages him to accept the scientific setback gracefully. ### [Chapter II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/ii) Elected as the new Director of the Institute, he accepts the role with the condition that his research continues, seeing it as a chance to advance science. ### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/iii) Honored at a dinner, arrives late and emotional, escorted by Martin Arrowsmith. ### [IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/iv) Gottlieb is overwhelmed by directorship, torn between his research and administrative duties, and becomes testy and autocratic. ### [V](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/v) Consulted by Martin about the plague research; offers cautious approval but limited help. ### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/iii) Director of the McGurk Institute, contacted by Dr. Stokes for help. ### [XXXII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/xxxii) Mentioned as a symbol of pure research and scientific integrity that Martin is leaving behind. ### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/i) Hesitates to act on the plague outbreak, focused on research; eventually agrees to send Martin and Sondelius. ### [Chapter II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/ii) Opposes Leora's travel but later craftily appoints her as Secretary and Technical Assistant to the commission. ### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/iii) Calls Martin in to express his worries about enemies and his Directorship, and urges Martin to complete the plague experiment. ### [VI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/vi) Arrives too late to say goodbye, appearing frail and sad. ### [XXXIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/xxxiii) Gottlieb, now old and ailing, serves as a reminder of the scientific purity Martin has lost. ### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/i) Recalled in Martin's memory as the visionary of pure research, whose demanding eyes strengthen Martin's resolve. ### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/iii) Stands beside Martin during his address to the Special Board, representing scientific authority. ### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/i) Imagined by Martin as expressing approval of his experiment. ### [VIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/viii) Martin dreads his harsh demands and judgment upon returning. ### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/iii) Martin thinks of facing Gottlieb's eyes, indicating Gottlieb's ongoing influence as a mentor. ### [IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/iv) Mentioned as having been pensioned off and in shaky health. ### [VI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/vi) Suffering from senile dementia, unable to recognize Martin, speaks only German. ### [Chapter VII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/vii) Absent from the Institute, but his absence pushes Martin to become more independent in his research. ### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/i) Gottlieb is mentioned as an example of a scientist harmed by administrative duties, influencing Martin's decision. ### [Chapter IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/chapters/iv) Sitting unmoving and alone in a dark small room above the banging city street, only his eyes alive. ## Links - HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/characters/max_gottlieb - Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se - All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/arrowsmith_se/characters