letters to a young contrarian

I mentioned before I wish to read the great books throughout history - though this book may not count - I thought this book might provide a window into some highly regarded books. I decide to read this book, firstly as it’s been on my forever “partly read” list, even though I’ve enjoyed it every time I sat down to read it. I have to admit, though I wish to take a critical lens to books I did also wish to learn Hitchens. What I learned from Hitchen’s was actually quite different from what I went into the book expecting to learn. I went in looking for a way of thinking that would aid me on my journey to tackle and defend ideas, what I came out with was a sense of grounded reality. Hitchen’s was hardly the star of the show, it was really the dissenters - which Hitchens settled on as the right time rather than contrarian as the book’s title suggests - that Hitchen’s highlights throughout the book to make his points. Hitchen’s himself I felt came out of the book as a deeply human and it’s this aspect which I wish to spend most of my time on.

Hitchen’s spends his time in this book on the idea that it is important to say what is right and just, even if this is not socially acceptable to do so. Hitchen’s uses stories and quotes to demonstrate how he thinks as a dissenter. The idea is to be as freethinking as possible and not succumb to any pressure to force your thoughts to be different, this may be social, political or physical. It’s a captivating read mainly as a introduction to stories I have not heard before, he is very effective at getting his point across. Hitchens suggests that his liberal use of quotes are using others to express ideas better than he could himself however it does seem to be an implicit call to authority that he assures us this is not what he is doing. I feel the same way I about his stoic against the grain advocacy to be able to be a freethinker. He seems to identify heavily with these people and often uses the people he has met or examples through history to assert his claims. Though he claims he is not tribal and spends a lot of the book talking about the importance of abiding by the truth. He may be more susceptible to social pressures than he seems. Though this seems to not be the case with the ideas but more as a sort of affinity that could subconsciously affect his ideas.

Though this is the case he does criticise some of these people and I think this highlights the charm of this books. What he is advocating for is immensely difficult and he admits himself he is not free from what he is cautioning against. I feel that is the great power of this Hitchen’s what you see is a human trying his best to be the dissenter and beacon of truth he wishes to be while succeeding and failing to do so. I think the part of the book that resonates most with this is when he is talking about the great dissenters such as Martin Luther King Jr. He says one of the things that makes him feel better is that these people who have done great things are all Human they all have a digestive tract and have made mistakes. I think Hitchens is a great addition to this and it’s well illustrated in this book that he is both a great journalist and dissenter but is a deeply flawed individual. He seems to find it difficult to not be tribal and to not call to authority but he also uses these devices in ways that are both hypocritical yet empowering. Become a dissenter but don’t be tribal, do not make claims to authority but Orwell is magnificent, be empirical but also feel.

Hitchen’s mentions that at times he relates to Diogenes more than Wilde and that sums him up well. A conflicted man who who can be contradictory in the most human and elegant way. I think the message that I took from this book and a message that has become ever more apparent to me in the world of science. The ideas and the conflicts can be great but behind those great things lies a human who is just as flawed as you are I. Even the magna carta the document that Western rule of law is built on has corrections in the margins. Be proud of what we humans can accomplish but always remember that we all have a digestive tract.