--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The last time I heard an orthodox Marxist…" description: "\"“The last time I heard an orthodox Marxist statement that was music to my ears was from a member of the Rwanda Patriotic Front, during the mass slaught..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/816/christopher-hitchens-117_ideology_the-last-time-i-heard-an-orthodox-marxis_2554668.jpg" --- # The last time I heard an orthodox Marxist statement that… ![“The last time I heard an orthodox Marxist statement that was music to my ears was from a member of the Rwanda Patriotic Front, during the mass slaughter in the country. 'The terms Hutu and Tutsi,' he said severely, 'are merely ideological constructs, describing different relationships to the means…” quote by Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/816/christopher-hitchens-117_ideology_the-last-time-i-heard-an-orthodox-marxis_2554668.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/816/christopher-hitchens-117_ideology_the-last-time-i-heard-an-orthodox-marxis_2554668.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/816/christopher-hitchens-117_ideology_the-last-time-i-heard-an-orthodox-marxis_2554668.jpg) > ““The last time I heard an orthodox Marxist statement that was music to my ears was from a member of the Rwanda Patriotic Front, during the mass slaughter in the country. 'The terms Hutu and Tutsi,' he said severely, 'are merely ideological constructs, describing different relationships to the means and mode of production.' But of course!”” [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. The speaker sarcastically remarks that even extremist ideologies can be reduced to abstract concepts, mocking the reduction of horrific events to theoretical terms. **In simple terms:** Even brutal events are framed as academic theory. Key Takeaway Beware of abstracting human suffering. Themes politics history ethics Mood critical serious Type philosophical political When to use this quote - academic discussions - political analysis - media commentary Key Concepts ideological reduction dehumanization Questions to Reflect On - How does language shape our view of violence? - Can theory ever fully capture lived horror? A Different Perspective Intellectualizing atrocities can desensitize audiences. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ideology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideology/) [Last time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/last-time/) [Marxism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/marxism/) [Marxist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/marxist/) [Marxist Statement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/marxist-statement-1551463/) [Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) [Orthodox Marxist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/orthodox-marxist-1551464/) [Rwanda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rwanda/) [Rwandan-genocide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rwandan-genocide-161821/) [Terms Hutu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/terms-hutu-1196105/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Tutsi Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tutsi-said-1551465/) ## Related quotes > [“I once spoke to someone who had survived the genocide in Rwanda, and she said to me that there was now nobody left on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/i-once-spoke-to-someone-who-had-survived-the-genocide-in-rwanda-and/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“George Bush made a mistake when he referred to the Saddam Hussein regime as 'evil.' Every liberal and leftist knows how to titter at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/george-bush-made-a-mistake-when-he-referred-to-the-saddam-hussein/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“In Europe, his contacts apologized and said there was nothing they could do. They would keep trying, but no one was listening. 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To him, as to any believer in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-a-schumpeter/the-religious-quality-of-marxism-also-explains-a-characteristic/) [Joseph A. Schumpeter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-a-schumpeter/) > [“...and my eyes no longer gaze the same on the face of the world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-hatzfeld/and-my-eyes-no-longer-gaze-the-same-on-the-face-of-the-world/) [Jean Hatzfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-hatzfeld/) > [“The truth is not believable to someone who has not lived it in his muscles.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-hatzfeld/the-truth-is-not-believable-to-someone-who-has-not-lived-it-in-his/) [Jean Hatzfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-hatzfeld/) > [“Genocide, after all, is an exercise in community building. A vigorous totalitarian order requires that the people be invested in the leader's scheme, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-gourevitch/genocide-after-all-is-an-exercise-in-community-building-a-vigorous/) [Philip Gourevitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-gourevitch/) > [“It always bothers me when I hear Rwanda's genocide described as a product of "ancient tribal hatreds." I think this is an easy way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-rusesabagina/it-always-bothers-me-when-i-hear-rwanda-s-genocide-described-as-a/) [Paul Rusesabagina](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-rusesabagina/) > [“As far as the political, military, and economic interests of the world’s powers go, (Rwanda) might as well be Mars. 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We have been rigorous and willful in all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/perhaps-we-have-failed-as-human-beings-perhaps-we-have-embarrassed/) [Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/) > [“We are preaching hope, standing on the bones of the past.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-rucyahana/we-are-preaching-hope-standing-on-the-bones-of-the-past/) [John Rucyahana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-rucyahana/) ## 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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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 Ideology quotes > [I have a way to photograph. You work with space, you have a camera, you have a frame, and then a fraction of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastiao-salgado/i-have-a-way-to-photograph-you-work-with-space-you-have-a-camera-you/) [Sebastiao Salgado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastiao-salgado/) > [Every profession has an ideology and a drive for power that goes far beyond its achievements and it is the task of democracy to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-feyerabend/every-profession-has-an-ideology-and-a-drive-for-power-that-goes-far/) [Paul Feyerabend](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-feyerabend/) > [We are in a world where globalization, which is an ideology, has forgotten and put aside the people, the people's interests, aspirations, and dreams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marine-le-pen/we-are-in-a-world-where-globalization-which-is-an-ideology-has/) [Marine Le Pen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marine-le-pen/) > [Orthodox churches, autocracy and national traditions are supposed to form a new national ideology in Russia. This would mean that Russia would be overtaken…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-sorokin/orthodox-churches-autocracy-and-national-traditions-are-supposed-to/) [Vladimir Sorokin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-sorokin/) > [ \[Putin\] is a bully. And bullies only understand when we punch them in the nose, but we need to do that economically. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-ayotte/putin-is-a-bully-and-bullies-only-understand-when-we-punch-them-in/) [Kelly Ayotte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-ayotte/) > [My rap comes from a sociological standpoint rather than picking a particular side or dogma or ideology. I just want people to be free…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/killer-mike/my-rap-comes-from-a-sociological-standpoint-rather-than-picking-a/) [Killer Mike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/killer-mike/) > [Al Jazeera is a representation of, you know, diversity in the Arab world. 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