--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: And I wonder, therefore, how James Atlas…" description: "\"“And I wonder, therefore, how James Atlas can have been so indulgent in his recent essay ‘The Changing World of New York Intellectuals.’ This rather sh..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5e6/christopher-hitchens-117_age-life_and-i-wonder-therefore-how-james-atlas-c_943547.jpg" --- # And I wonder, therefore, how James Atlas can have been so… ![“And I wonder, therefore, how James Atlas can have been so indulgent in his recent essay ‘The Changing World of New York Intellectuals.’ This rather shallow piece appeared in the New York Times magazine, and took us over the usual jumps. Gone are the days of Partisan Review , Delmore Schwartz…” quote by Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5e6/christopher-hitchens-117_age-life_and-i-wonder-therefore-how-james-atlas-c_943547.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5e6/christopher-hitchens-117_age-life_and-i-wonder-therefore-how-james-atlas-c_943547.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5e6/christopher-hitchens-117_age-life_and-i-wonder-therefore-how-james-atlas-c_943547.jpg) > ““And I wonder, therefore, how James Atlas can have been so indulgent in his recent essay ‘The Changing World of New York Intellectuals.’ This rather shallow piece appeared in the New York Times magazine, and took us over the usual jumps. Gone are the days of Partisan Review , Delmore Schwartz, Dwight MacDonald etc etc. No longer the tempest of debate over Trotsky, The Waste Land , Orwell, blah, blah. Today the assimilation of the Jewish American, the rise of rents in midtown Manhattan, the erosion of Village life, yawn, yawn. The drift to the right, the rediscovery of patriotism, the gruesome maturity of the once iconoclastic Norman Podhoretz, okay, okay ! I have one question which Atlas in his much-ballyhooed article did not even discuss. The old gang may have had regrettable flirtations. Their political compromises, endlessly reviewed, may have exhibited naivety or self-regard. But much of that record is still educative, and the argument did take place under real pressure from anti-semitic and authoritarian enemies. Today, the alleged ‘neo-conservative’ movement around Jeane Kirkpatrick, Commentary and the New Criterion can be found in unforced alliance with openly obscurantist, fundamentalist and above all anti-intellectual forces. In the old days, there would at least have been a debate on the proprieties of such a united front, with many fine distinctions made and brave attitudes struck. As I write, nearness to power seems the only excuse, and the subject is changed as soon it is raised. I wait for the agonised, self-justifying neo-conservative essay about necessary and contingent alliances. Do I linger in vain?”” [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Hitchens laments the loss of rigorous intellectual debate among New York writers, noting a shift toward conformity and political expediency. **In simple terms:** He misses the vibrant, contentious discussions of the past. Key Takeaway Seek honest, critical dialogue over easy alignment. Themes intellectual history politics culture media criticism ideological shift Mood reflective critical melancholic Type analytical historical political When to use this quote - academic seminars - editorial meetings - political forums - media analysis - public debates Key Concepts neo‑conservatism public discourse elitism cultural decay intellectual rigor Questions to Reflect On - How can we revive genuine debate in today’s media? - What role does nostalgia play in assessing past intellectual vigor? A Different Perspective The quote may overstate the homogeneity of contemporary discourse, ignoring pockets of vibrant debate. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Americans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/americans/) [Anti semitism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anti-semitism/) [Anti-intellectualism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anti-intellectualism/) [Authoritarianism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/authoritarianism/) [Changing World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/changing-world/) [Cold war](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cold-war/) [Communism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communism/) [Debate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/debate/) [Fundamentalism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fundamentalism/) [George-orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/george-orwell/) [Intellectuals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intellectuals/) [Jews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jews/) [Manhattan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/manhattan/) [New york](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/new-york/) [Obscurantism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obscurantism/) [Patriotism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patriotism/) [Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/power/) [Village life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/village-life/) [Waste land](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/waste-land/) [York Times](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/york-times/) ## Related quotes > [“Hesitate once, hesitate twice, hesitate a hundred times before employing political standards as a device for the analysis and appreciation of poetry.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/hesitate-once-hesitate-twice-hesitate-a-hundred-times-before/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“Trotsky was so much an intellectual that in the final analysis, Marxism was not quite enough for him.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/trotsky-was-so-much-an-intellectual-that-in-the-final-analysis/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“Remember that it is 'free-thinking Jews,' not Jews as such, who are defined as the undesirables by T.S. 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Gone are the days of Partisan Review , Delmore Schwartz, Dwight MacDonald etc etc. No longer the tempest of debate over Trotsky, The Waste Land , Orwell, blah, blah. Today the assimilation of the Jewish American, the rise of rents in midtown Manhattan, the erosion of Village life, yawn, yawn. The drift to the right, the rediscovery of patriotism, the gruesome maturity of the once iconoclastic Norman Podhoretz, okay, okay ! I have one question which Atlas in his much-ballyhooed article did not even discuss. The old gang may have had regrettable flirtations. Their political compromises, endlessly reviewed, may have exhibited naivety or self-regard. But much of that record is still educative, and the argument did take place under real pressure from anti-semitic and authoritarian enemies. Today, the alleged ‘neo-conservative’ movement around Jeane Kirkpatrick, Commentary and the New Criterion can be found in unforced alliance with openly obscurantist, fundamentalist and above all anti-intellectual forces. In the old days, there would at least have been a debate on the proprieties of such a united front, with many fine distinctions made and brave attitudes struck. As I write, nearness to power seems the only excuse, and the subject is changed as soon it is raised. I wait for the agonised, self-justifying neo-conservative essay about necessary and contingent alliances. 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