Salman Rushdie, in less than 140 characters, tweeted that moving tribute to his friend Christopher Hitchens. I am not in the least bit ashamed to say that I am truly saddened by the death of this remarkable man. I so wished that I would not write about him in the past tense for a long time. Sadly, that time has come.
I do not think I can be as eloquently succinct as Rushdie, or as moving as George Eaton of the New Statesman has been, but I need to at least try to martial my thoughts. Hitchens was above all a rationalist, so claiming emotional reasons not to write would probably annoy him no end.
He was the most eloquent person I have ever come across. While I never got to meet him (a disappointment that will now stay with me always), there was no one else who could match how passionately, how convincingly, and how lucidly as Hitch.
In January, I wrote about the different ways Hitchens has inspired and influenced me:
Firstly is very simple: his style of writing and speaking. He uses the English language in such a compelling way that I find myself riveted by what he has to say even if a particular topic is not of interest or even if I disagree with his position. The first example of a disagreement I can think of is his glorification and excessive consumption of alcohol. Regardless of minor things, his writing and speaking voice are very distinctive. Reading his books or articles, and listening to him in interviews or debates is always a pleasure.
The next thing that draws my attention to him is the way our main interests seem to overlap. Hitchens is avidly interested in American history, American politics and the influence of religion in a secular society. As am I. The fact that he writes so extensively about these three subjects has naturally drawn me more to his work.
The third and final factor in Hitchens' great influence on me is his life story and attitude. He was born and raised in England but always felt the pull of the United States. He has said that he feels like he was born in the wrong country: something I have been saying about myself for years. He is now a naturalized American citizen who writes for a living about America and religion. That is what I want for my own life (on my own terms obviously, I do not want to simply be a carbon copy).
I realize now that the idea of me becoming a carbon copy of Hitchens is ludicrous and rather big-headed of me to even imply (although that was not the original intention of the piece).
Hitchens was an intellectual giant. He could speak in great detail about a vast range of subjects. Most importantly, he was never boring. Ever. His mother once told him that the only unforgivable sin was to be boring, and Hitchens never was.
Like many people, I first became aware of Hitchens through his book god Is Not Great, a scathing attack on the morality of religion, but reading Hitchens on this subject was like reading my own thoughts but made by a much better educated and far more eloquent voice.
It did not stop there though. Once I had started reading Hitchens, it became my mission to devour as much of his writing as I could get my hands on. There are still books of his that I have not yet bought and read, but they are all on my list. His biographies of Thomas Jefferson and George Orwell are magnificent, as are his scathing polemics on Mother Theresa and Henry Kissinger. My favorite, however, is Letters to a Young Contrarian. I have reread that book several times and will most likely reread it again several times.
In that book, Hitchens said "The essence of the independent mind lies not in what it thinks, but in how it thinks". This is as a good a mantra as ever to base your intellectual life on. While the door into journalism is a difficult one to open at the moment, I shall persevere. Hitchens is the one who made me want to be a writer, a journalist, a voice in the public sphere.
I am indebted to him in so many ways, yet this tribute probably comes across sounding extremely amateur. I apologize if that is the case, truly I do, but I needed to write something about the man who did more to shape my outlook than anyone else.
The man may be gone, but his work will live forever. Newton once said that he was standing on the shoulders of giants. Hitchens made giants look small. The world will be a much less interesting, and much less colorful place without him.
Hitchens was an intellectual giant. He could speak in great detail about a vast range of subjects. Most importantly, he was never boring. Ever. His mother once told him that the only unforgivable sin was to be boring, and Hitchens never was.
Like many people, I first became aware of Hitchens through his book god Is Not Great, a scathing attack on the morality of religion, but reading Hitchens on this subject was like reading my own thoughts but made by a much better educated and far more eloquent voice.
It did not stop there though. Once I had started reading Hitchens, it became my mission to devour as much of his writing as I could get my hands on. There are still books of his that I have not yet bought and read, but they are all on my list. His biographies of Thomas Jefferson and George Orwell are magnificent, as are his scathing polemics on Mother Theresa and Henry Kissinger. My favorite, however, is Letters to a Young Contrarian. I have reread that book several times and will most likely reread it again several times.
In that book, Hitchens said "The essence of the independent mind lies not in what it thinks, but in how it thinks". This is as a good a mantra as ever to base your intellectual life on. While the door into journalism is a difficult one to open at the moment, I shall persevere. Hitchens is the one who made me want to be a writer, a journalist, a voice in the public sphere.
I am indebted to him in so many ways, yet this tribute probably comes across sounding extremely amateur. I apologize if that is the case, truly I do, but I needed to write something about the man who did more to shape my outlook than anyone else.
The man may be gone, but his work will live forever. Newton once said that he was standing on the shoulders of giants. Hitchens made giants look small. The world will be a much less interesting, and much less colorful place without him.
Christopher Hitchens
13 April 1949 - 15 December 2011
13 April 1949 - 15 December 2011
