Christopher Hitchens is Alive and Well in Books and on YouTube

Christopher Hitchens (2007)        (c) NYTimes

Christopher Hitchens became a household name in my immediate family after being initiated in the arguments of antitheism through the writings of Richard Dawkins in The God Delusion, which Elena and I listened to on our weekly trips to and from Petersburg, PA. Listening to Hitchens' book on the same subject, God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything, made us forget how much time we spent in the car each week. Time simply disappeared by immersing ourselves in Christopher's life force. In December last year we spent a short week in England, mainly London, Cambridge and Oxford. One of the highlights of that trip was our visit to Balliol College in Oxford where Hitchens transformed himself into an activist troublemaker and debater of everything he believed in.

Not all things Hitchens wrote and talked about I agreed with. Most notably his defense of W and the Iraq war, and his more recent statement that life begins at conception, although of course it does if you equate a bundle of cells with human life. But for me the fascinating thing about Hitchens was his enormous intellect, his memory of books read many years ago, and his unwavering fight of hypocrisy, authoritarianism, and religious fanaticism, his staunch defense of individual freedom, and most particularly his eloquence in speaking out about everything he loved and all and everyone he detested.

After God is not Great I read several other books from Hitchens. He wrote easy-to-digest books about the lives of Thomas Jefferson and Thomas Paine, and an insightful guide book for his students on how to become and remain an independent thinker and writer (Letters to a Young Contrarian). While his earthly life may have ended I am still working on Why Orwell Matters, Hitch-22 and a recently published collection of his essays, titled Arguably. And fortunately, thanks to YouTube, we can relive his many TV appearances and videotapes as often as we want.

For an account of his friendship with Ian McEwan read today's article in the Times, where I also copied the above picture of CH sitting at home in Washington. I was very moved by the part where they connect by laptop from his hospital bed to thousands of people assembled in England. Many young people who, as Ian says, would no doubt have disagreed with him about Iraq. It's a great tribute to be admired by so many people who disagree with you. That's the way life ought to be for all of us.