If by clever things you mean "pointfree" all over the place then i agree but if you mean "abstractions" in general then that's a different thing and this says it best.
“The purpose of abstraction is not to be vague, but to create a new semantic level in which one can be absolutely precise.”
~ Edsger Dijkstra
I think i can honestly say i did not fully get that quote until i learned Haskell
Great quote. I think if people think of level of abstraction it makes more sense. All code is an abstract representation, but to solve a problem, it's easier to work within an abstraction level that fits the problem.
“The purpose of abstraction is not to be vague, but to create a new semantic level in which one can be absolutely precise.”
~ Edsger Dijkstra
I think i can honestly say i did not fully get that quote until i learned Haskell