--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The conversation can be serious, too…" description: "\"“The conversation can be serious, too, taking on the form of a grave philosophical discourse as the characters take turns to expound their views of lif..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cab/edward-whittemore-29242_change_the-conversation-can-be-serious-too-taki_2073255.png" --- # The conversation can be serious, too, taking on the form… ![“The conversation can be serious, too, taking on the form of a grave philosophical discourse as the characters take turns to expound their views of life. When Joe finally comes face to face with his elusive prey, Stern, the chit chat gives way to pure oratory: Revolution, said Stern. We can’t even…” quote by Edward Whittemore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cab/edward-whittemore-29242_change_the-conversation-can-be-serious-too-taki_2073255.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cab/edward-whittemore-29242_change_the-conversation-can-be-serious-too-taki_2073255.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cab/edward-whittemore-29242_change_the-conversation-can-be-serious-too-taki_2073255.png) > ““The conversation can be serious, too, taking on the form of a grave philosophical discourse as the characters take turns to expound their views of life. When Joe finally comes face to face with his elusive prey, Stern, the chit chat gives way to pure oratory: Revolution, said Stern. We can’t even comprehend what it is, not what it means or what it suggests. We pretend it means total change but it’s much more than that, so vastly more complex, and yes, so much simpler too. It’s not just the total change from night to day as our earth spins in its revolutions around a minor star. It’s also our little star revolving around its own unknowable center and so with all the stars in their billions, and so with the galaxies and the universe itself. Change revolves and truly there is nothing but revolution. All movement is revolution and so is time, and although those laws are impossibly complex and beyond us, their result is simple. For us, very simple. And yet, this is where Whittemore’s great strength comes in: just as we are beginning to accept that this is more a philosophical treatise than a spy story, a pleasant meta-fiction, Whittemore suddenly pulls the strings taut with a dramatic piece of action worthy of Le Carré (more comparisons).”” [Edward Whittemore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-whittemore/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The passage explores how profound philosophical ideas about change and revolution can be woven into a spy narrative, showing that deep reflection and action are not mutually exclusive. **In simple terms:** Philosophy and espionage can mix, revealing complex change. Key Takeaway Embrace both thought and deed. Themes philosophy espionage change revolution meta‑fiction Mood introspective thoughtful Type literary analytical reflective When to use this quote - spy thriller - academic discussion - personal reflection Key Concepts complexity simplicity cosmic perspective Questions to Reflect On - How does deep philosophy affect narrative pacing? - Can action balance heavy ideas? A Different Perspective The abstract may alienate readers seeking straightforward plot. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Change](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/change/) [Chit chat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chit-chat/) [Communication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/) [Face to face](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/face-to-face/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Philosophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy/) [Revolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/revolution/) ## Related quotes > [Revolution is only truly revolution if it is a continuous struggle-not just an external struggle against an enemy, but an inner struggle, fighting and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sukarno/revolution-is-only-truly-revolution-if-it-is-a-continuous-struggle/) [Sukarno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sukarno/) > [“Real things are subject to change, which revolves around reality. Get out, start moving, and be the change unless you want to sit still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-taskinsoy/real-things-are-subject-to-change-which-revolves-around-reality-get/) [JOHN TASKINSOY](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-taskinsoy/) > [“He looked the Prince up and down, like a hangman taking his measurements. 'Of course there will be a revolution,' he said. 'You are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/he-looked-the-prince-up-and-down-like-a-hangman-taking-his/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“That rattled Lindsey. At home a teacher who used that dirty word would be suspended. One who repeated it could be fired. and besides…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mackey-chandler/that-rattled-lindsey-at-home-a-teacher-who-used-that-dirty-word-would/) [Mackey Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mackey-chandler/) > [We don't want to be like the leader in the French Revolution who said There go my people, I must find out where they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kennedy/we-don-t-want-to-be-like-the-leader-in-the-french-revolution-who-said/) [John F. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/) > [“For the same reason there is nowhere to begin to trace the sheaf or the graphics of differance. For what is put into question…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-derrida/for-the-same-reason-there-is-nowhere-to-begin-to-trace-the-sheaf-or/) [Jacques Derrida](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-derrida/) > [Philosophy - reduced, as we have seen, to philosophical discourse - develops from this point on in a different atmosphere and environment from that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-hadot/philosophy-reduced-as-we-have-seen-to-philosophical-discourse/) [Pierre Hadot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-hadot/) > [The philosophers talk across the centuries exclusively to one another, hermetically sealed from any influences derived from non-philosophical discourse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-goldstein/the-philosophers-talk-across-the-centuries-exclusively-to-one-another/) [Rebecca Goldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-goldstein/) > [“Let us being again. To take some examples: why should “literature” still designate that which already breaks away from literature—away from what has always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-derrida/let-us-being-again-to-take-some-examples-why-should-literature-still/) [Jacques Derrida](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-derrida/) > [“Naomi looked around the room, then down at the cup. Then back around the room. Then again at the cup. No. Way. “Hello?” “Hello!…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-a-hunter/naomi-looked-around-the-room-then-down-at-the-cup-then-back-around/) S.A. Hunter > [I'm not a person who needs to chit-chat between takes by any means.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-dano/i-m-not-a-person-who-needs-to-chit-chat-between-takes-by-any-means/) [Paul Dano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-dano/) > [I love to chit-chat and used to be the first to arrive at a party and the last to leave.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anita-dobson/i-love-to-chit-chat-and-used-to-be-the-first-to-arrive-at-a-party-and/) [Anita Dobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anita-dobson/) > [“The silence between us stretched out, but it wasn’t awkward. Sometimes there are people you can be quiet with, and you never feel the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claudia-gray/the-silence-between-us-stretched-out-but-it-wasn-t-awkward-sometimes/) [Claudia Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claudia-gray/) > [If you explore beneath shyness or party chit-chat, you can sometimes turn a dull exchange into an intriguing one. I've found this to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/if-you-explore-beneath-shyness-or-party-chit-chat-you-can-sometimes/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [Paul McCartney chit-chats with you, he makes eye contact with you, he seems really interested in what you're saying. He really puts everyone else…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-huebel/paul-mccartney-chit-chats-with-you-he-makes-eye-contact-with-you-he/) [Rob Huebel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-huebel/) ## More by Edward Whittemore > [“This heady mixture of the philosophical and the dramatic runs throughout the book, the one underlying the other, and the result, unlikely though it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-whittemore/this-heady-mixture-of-the-philosophical-and-the-dramatic-runs/) [Edward Whittemore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-whittemore/) > [“Like many authors belonging to that large and unfortunate caste, “the unjustly neglected”, Whittemore suffers from being an embarrassingly good read. He also suffers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-whittemore/like-many-authors-belonging-to-that-large-and-unfortunate-caste-the/) [Edward Whittemore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-whittemore/) > [“Once again, Whittemore escapes what might be a fatal mistake in another author. Far from the funhouse hall of mirrors one might expect from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-whittemore/once-again-whittemore-escapes-what-might-be-a-fatal-mistake-in/) [Edward Whittemore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-whittemore/) > [“No, no guns, they won’t get us anywhere. I tried that when I was young and it’s a useless interim game. Use guns and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-whittemore/no-no-guns-they-won-t-get-us-anywhere-i-tried-that-when-i-was-young/) [Edward Whittemore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-whittemore/) > [“From the decks of the warships the foreign sailors watched the massacre through binoculars and took pictures. The navy bands played late and phonographs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-whittemore/from-the-decks-of-the-warships-the-foreign-sailors-watched-the/) [Edward Whittemore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-whittemore/) > [“What this amounts to, and what makes the critic with his nose for genre and structure so nervous, is that by all accounts this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-whittemore/what-this-amounts-to-and-what-makes-the-critic-with-his-nose-for/) [Edward Whittemore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-whittemore/) > [“Ah well, he thought, we do what we can. It makes little difference but we have to do it anyway. Stern’s words, he suddenly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-whittemore/ah-well-he-thought-we-do-what-we-can-it-makes-little-difference-but/) [Edward Whittemore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-whittemore/) > [“The distant rumble of gun fire and armored vehicles is the rumble of history itself, bearing down on Whittemore’s characters as they engage in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-whittemore/the-distant-rumble-of-gun-fire-and-armored-vehicles-is-the-rumble-of/) [Edward Whittemore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-whittemore/) > [“… so it isn’t true any longer that we can just create ourselves. Now we must. Our childhood as a race is over and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-whittemore/so-it-isn-t-true-any-longer-that-we-can-just-create-ourselves-now-we/) [Edward Whittemore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-whittemore/) > [“Yes. Despite the ultimate mystery of the universe there’s still one small truth we can live by. Choice. Never merely to take what we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-whittemore/yes-despite-the-ultimate-mystery-of-the-universe-there-s-still-one/) [Edward Whittemore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-whittemore/) > [“… a night twenty years ago and forever and but a prelude to the century, but a shadow of the far deeper descent into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-whittemore/a-night-twenty-years-ago-and-forever-and-but-a-prelude-to-the-century/) [Edward Whittemore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-whittemore/) > [“Something else apart from this heady fusion draws us in to Nile Shadows, though, and that’s a certain compulsive quality that, as in all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-whittemore/something-else-apart-from-this-heady-fusion-draws-us-in-to-nile/) [Edward Whittemore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-whittemore/) > [“… and just as suddenly he was with Stern and it was a night twenty years ago in a city once called Smyrna, once…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-whittemore/and-just-as-suddenly-he-was-with-stern-and-it-was-a-night-twenty/) [Edward Whittemore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-whittemore/) > [“The real protagonists of the Quartet are surely the parched and beautiful deserts of the biblical lands, with their oases and ruins, and above…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-whittemore/the-real-protagonists-of-the-quartet-are-surely-the-parched-and/) [Edward Whittemore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-whittemore/) > [Why is it the Mongols of this world always tell us they're defending us against the Mongols?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-whittemore/why-is-it-the-mongols-of-this-world-always-tell-us-they-re-defending/) [Edward Whittemore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-whittemore/) [Explore all 18 Edward Whittemore quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-whittemore/) ## More Change quotes > [Only within yourself exists the other reality for which you long. I can give you nothing that has not already its being within yourself.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/only-within-yourself-exists-the-other-reality-for-which-you-long-i/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I can't believe that I'm sitting in meetings with Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, and Annette Bening. I want to take on that responsibility to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/i-can-t-believe-that-i-m-sitting-in-meetings-with-steven-spielberg/) [Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/) > [“…progress isn't necessarily about change but about things turning out as we want them to”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-hogan/progress-isn-t-necessarily-about-change-but-about-things-turning-out/) Phil Hogan > [Nobody can tell me that no changes are necessary in Washington.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-weld/nobody-can-tell-me-that-no-changes-are-necessary-in-washington/) [William Weld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-weld/) > [If my campaign is not in the debate, we will not be talking about how we really fix this problem of endless and expanding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-stein/if-my-campaign-is-not-in-the-debate-we-will-not-be-talking-about-how/) [Jill Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-stein/) > [When you walk down the street of Kabul your values for life changes, they do change.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-pierre-white/when-you-walk-down-the-street-of-kabul-your-values-for-life-changes/) [Marco Pierre White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-pierre-white/) > [Your world will change whether or not you choose to change, but you have the power to choose it's direction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-hill/your-world-will-change-whether-or-not-you-choose-to-change-but-you/) [Napoleon Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-hill/) > [I hope I continue to evolve.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-flair/i-hope-i-continue-to-evolve/) [Charlotte Flair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-flair/) > [“Stay focused on bringing people together and more on positive messaging so that you can be the change you wish to see in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/germany-kent/stay-focused-on-bringing-people-together-and-more-on-positive/) [Germany Kent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/germany-kent/) > [The biggest change for me as a mom was realizing I needed to put someone else before me. Now the hardest part about the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-alexis/the-biggest-change-for-me-as-a-mom-was-realizing-i-needed-to-put/) [Kim Alexis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-alexis/) > [“After the funeral, my life changed. I felt as if time were suddenly precious, water going down an open drain, and I could not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-albom/after-the-funeral-my-life-changed-i-felt-as-if-time-were-suddenly/) [Mitch Albom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-albom/) > [You practice mindfulness, on the one hand, to be calm and peaceful. On the other hand, as you practice mindfulness and live a life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-practice-mindfulness-on-the-one-hand-to-be-calm-and-peaceful-on/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Irish research will contribute to global progress and have the potential to help all countries realise the potential of their land sectors in addressing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enda-kenny/irish-research-will-contribute-to-global-progress-and-have-the/) [Enda Kenny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enda-kenny/) > [No man can change himself into anything from sheer reason; he can only change into what he potentially is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-jung/no-man-can-change-himself-into-anything-from-sheer-reason-he-can-only/) [Carl Jung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-jung/) [Browse all 33,920 Change quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/change/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The conversation can be serious, too, taking on the form of a grave philosophical discourse as the characters take turns to expound their views of life. 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