--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It was at a conference in Cyprus in 1976…" description: "\"“It was at a conference in Cyprus in 1976, where the theme was the rights of small nations, that I first met Edward Said. It was impossible not to be c..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1c2/christopher-hitchens-117_1976_it-was-at-a-conference-in-cyprus-in-1976_62136.jpg" --- # It was at a conference in Cyprus in 1976, where the theme… ![“It was at a conference in Cyprus in 1976, where the theme was the rights of small nations, that I first met Edward Said. It was impossible not to be captivated by him: of his many immediately seductive qualities I will start by mentioning a very important one. When he laughed, it was as if he was…” quote by Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1c2/christopher-hitchens-117_1976_it-was-at-a-conference-in-cyprus-in-1976_62136.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1c2/christopher-hitchens-117_1976_it-was-at-a-conference-in-cyprus-in-1976_62136.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1c2/christopher-hitchens-117_1976_it-was-at-a-conference-in-cyprus-in-1976_62136.jpg) > ““It was at a conference in Cyprus in 1976, where the theme was the rights of small nations, that I first met Edward Said. It was impossible not to be captivated by him: of his many immediately seductive qualities I will start by mentioning a very important one. When he laughed, it was as if he was surrendering unconditionally to some guilty pleasure. At first the very picture of professorial rectitude, with faultless tweeds, cravats, and other accoutrements (the pipe also being to the fore), he would react to a risqué remark, or a disclosure of something vaguely scandalous, as if a whole Trojan horse of mirth had been smuggled into his interior and suddenly disgorged its contents. The build-up, in other words, was worth one's effort.”” [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. Said's charisma and humor made his intellectual presence compelling, blending scholarly seriousness with playful irreverence. **In simple terms:** Said's wit humanized his scholarship. Key Takeaway Humor can amplify intellectual impact. Themes charisma humor intellectual presence scholarly demeanor humanity Mood admiring intrigued Type anecdotal personal observation When to use this quote - academic conferences - public lectures - debates - interviews Key Concepts personality presentation engagement Practical Applications - public speaking - teaching Questions to Reflect On - How does humor affect credibility? - Can seriousness coexist with playfulness? A Different Perspective null ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [1976](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/zz-1976-449/) [Cyprus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cyprus/) [Edward Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/edward-said-841106/) [Edward-said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/edward-said/) [First met](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/first-met/) [Guilty pleasure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/guilty-pleasure/) [Laughed Surrendering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/laughed-surrendering-841108/) [Laughter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/laughter/) [Met Edward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/met-edward-841105/) [Risqué Remark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/risqu-remark-841104/) [Seductive Qualities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seductive-qualities-841107/) [Trojan horse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trojan-horse/) ## Related quotes > [“I resolutely refuse to believe that the state of Edward's health had anything to do with this, and I don't say this only because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/i-resolutely-refuse-to-believe-that-the-state-of-edward-s-health-had/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [ In a public dialogue with Salman in London he \[Edward Said\] had once described the Palestinian plight as one where his people, expelled and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/in-a-public-dialogue-with-salman-in-london-he-edward-said-had-once/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“Jo couldn’t even lose her heart in a decorous manner, but sternly tried to quench her feelings, and failing to do so, led a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/jo-couldn-t-even-lose-her-heart-in-a-decorous-manner-but-sternly/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [“I was to grow used to hearing, around New York, the annoying way in which people would say: 'Edward Said, such a suave and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/i-was-to-grow-used-to-hearing-around-new-york-the-annoying-way-in/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“The North Korean capital, Pyongyang, is a city consecrated to the worship of a father-son dynasty. 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I like running…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-grazer/i-met-edward-teller-everything-he-believed-in-and-stood-for-was/) [Brian Grazer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-grazer/) > [ Intellectuals (in the standard sense of the term, not \[ Edward\] Said's prescriptive sense) are the people who write history. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/intellectuals-in-the-standard-sense-of-the-term-not-edward-said-s/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Edward Said is a very honorable representative of the "intellectual" in the sense of the term that he defines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/edward-said-is-a-very-honorable-representative-of-the-intellectual-in/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [“Edward," I said, managing to speak more clearly with a little effort, "there's no point to forever without you. I wouldn't want one day…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie-meyers/edward-i-said-managing-to-speak-more-clearly-with-a-little-effort/) [Stephanie Meyers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephanie-meyers/) > [“Time means a lot to me, paperwork wastes it, and I have always been a firm believer in my right to do anything I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-zelazny/time-means-a-lot-to-me-paperwork-wastes-it-and-i-have-always-been-a/) [Roger Zelazny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-zelazny/) > [“Logic is the science of the justification of conclusions we have reached by natural reasoning. My point is that, for such natural reasoning to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-jaynes/logic-is-the-science-of-the-justification-of-conclusions-we-have/) [Julian Jaynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-jaynes/) > [“They are doodlehums." "Doodlehums?" "Antisocial individuals, intentional circumventors of statutes." "Oh, hoodlums. Yes I guessed that much on my own. What can you tell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-zelazny/they-are-doodlehums-doodlehums-antisocial-individuals-intentional/) [Roger Zelazny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-zelazny/) > [“You are one of the few successful persons I know." "Me? Why?" "You know precisely what you are doing and you do it well."…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-zelazny/you-are-one-of-the-few-successful-persons-i-know-me-why-you-know/) [Roger Zelazny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-zelazny/) > [“Osiris, to go directly to the important part of this, was not a "dying god," not "life caught in the spell of death," or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-jaynes/osiris-to-go-directly-to-the-important-part-of-this-was-not-a-dying/) [Julian Jaynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-jaynes/) ## More by Christopher Hitchens > [“The spirit of our accurate and exact philosophy is outraged by conclusions that contradict each other so glaringly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/the-spirit-of-our-accurate-and-exact-philosophy-is-outraged-by/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“Many governments employ torture but this was the first time that the element of Saturnalia and pornography in the process had been made so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/many-governments-employ-torture-but-this-was-the-first-time-that-the/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [ It's \[Los Angeles\] mostly full of nonsense and delusion and egomania. 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Religion says that we would not know right from wrong, we… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/religion-attacks-us-in-our-deepest-integrity-the-core-of-our-self/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“In the very recent past, we have seen the Church of Rome befouled by its complicity with the unpardonable sin of child rape, or,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/in-the-very-recent-past-we-have-seen-the-church-of-rome-befouled-by/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [It's surprising to me how many of my friends send Christmas cards, or holiday cards, including my atheist and secular friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-surprising-to-me-how-many-of-my-friends-send-christmas-cards-or/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [Suppose there were groups of secularists at hospitals who went round the terminally ill and urged them to adopt atheism: 'Don't be a mug…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/suppose-there-were-groups-of-secularists-at-hospitals-who-went-round/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [There are, after all, atheists who say they wish the fable were true but are unable to suspend the requisite disbelief, or who have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/there-are-after-all-atheists-who-say-they-wish-the-fable-were-true/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“It isn’t so long since a test of Anglican orthodoxy was applied to anyone seeking to study or teach at Oxford and Cambridge universities.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-isn-t-so-long-since-a-test-of-anglican-orthodoxy-was-applied-to/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [Gullibility and credulity are considered undesireable qualities in every department of human life - except religion ... 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Don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-much-worse-to-see-a-woman-drunk-than-a-man-i-don-t-know-quite/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [It's true that obscenity is a matter of taste and in the eye of the beholder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-true-that-obscenity-is-a-matter-of-taste-and-in-the-eye-of-the/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [I worked out early on to give up things I couldn't do well at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/i-worked-out-early-on-to-give-up-things-i-couldn-t-do-well-at-all/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [Writing is what's important to me, and anything that helps me do that - or enhances and prolongs and deepens and sometimes intensifies argument…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/writing-is-what-s-important-to-me-and-anything-that-helps-me-do-that/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) [Explore all 1,241 Christopher Hitchens quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) ## More 1976 quotes > [“Logic is the science of the justification of conclusions we have reached by natural reasoning. My point is that, for such natural reasoning to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-jaynes/logic-is-the-science-of-the-justification-of-conclusions-we-have/) [Julian Jaynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-jaynes/) > [“The North Korean capital, Pyongyang, is a city consecrated to the worship of a father-son dynasty. (I came to think of them, with their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/the-north-korean-capital-pyongyang-is-a-city-consecrated-to-the/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“Time means a lot to me, paperwork wastes it, and I have always been a firm believer in my right to do anything I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-zelazny/time-means-a-lot-to-me-paperwork-wastes-it-and-i-have-always-been-a/) [Roger Zelazny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-zelazny/) > [“Osiris, to go directly to the important part of this, was not a "dying god," not "life caught in the spell of death," or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-jaynes/osiris-to-go-directly-to-the-important-part-of-this-was-not-a-dying/) [Julian Jaynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-jaynes/) > [“They are doodlehums." "Doodlehums?" "Antisocial individuals, intentional circumventors of statutes." "Oh, hoodlums. Yes I guessed that much on my own. What can you tell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-zelazny/they-are-doodlehums-doodlehums-antisocial-individuals-intentional/) [Roger Zelazny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-zelazny/) > [“You are one of the few successful persons I know." "Me? Why?" "You know precisely what you are doing and you do it well."…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-zelazny/you-are-one-of-the-few-successful-persons-i-know-me-why-you-know/) [Roger Zelazny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-zelazny/) > [“When you're a kid, the world can be bounded in a nutshell. In geographical terms, a child's universe is a space that comprises home,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcelo-figueras/when-you-re-a-kid-the-world-can-be-bounded-in-a-nutshell-in/) [Marcelo Figueras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcelo-figueras/) [Browse all 8 1976 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/zz-1976-449/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“It was at a conference in Cyprus in 1976, where the theme was the rights of small nations, that I first met Edward Said. It was impossible not to be captivated by him: of his many immediately seductive qualities I will start by mentioning a very important one. When he laughed, it was as if he was surrendering unconditionally to some guilty pleasure. At first the very picture of professorial rectitude, with faultless tweeds, cravats, and other accoutrements (the pipe also being to the fore), he would react to a risqué remark, or a disclosure of something vaguely scandalous, as if a whole Trojan horse of mirth had been smuggled into his interior and suddenly disgorged its contents. 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