Freedom and choice

Self-knowledge and personal growth Relationships, work and leisure Values and ethical living

Charlie Chaplin and Chester Conklin, dressed in overalls, scratch their heads, standing in front of large industrial gears and machinery in a black-and-white scene.

Freedom and choice

idea

Why Charlie Chaplin was an ‘angel of peace’ for Walter Benjamin

Though a tramp and a misfit, Chaplin’s world fit him like a glove. His life of contingency appealed to the émigré Benjamin

by Eli Friedlander

Graffiti in French reading “L’ART C’EST DE LA MERDE” is painted on a concrete wall. The words are written in black, casual handwriting, with a smaller, less legible text scribbled underneath. A piece of paper is fixed to the top right side of the wall.

Communication and language

idea

Censoring offensive language threatens our freedom to think

The modern obsession with textual purity stems from a misapplication of the philosophies of Wittgenstein and Derrida

by Paul Ham

A wooden door with a brass push plate and push sign, looking out to a blurred street view with a parked car.

Freedom and choice

guide

How to think about free will

You can’t escape cause and effect, but there is a way of viewing human agency that is motivating, plausible and humane

by Julian Baggini

Two silhouetted people stand against a dramatic orange and purple sunset sky.

Freedom and choice

film

In the outback, a town of two awaits visitors to their emergency airport

Directed by Yannick Jamey

A rotating antique globe in brass and other materials seen from above

Freedom and choice

idea

Recognise free will is an illusion and reap the emotional benefits

The idea that all our choices are determined by past events may seem dispiriting – but it can be emotionally liberating

by Francis Merson

Person diving into an icy blue waterhole amidst a frozen landscape, with scattered ice chunks and a stack of icy blocks nearby.

Freedom and choice

idea

The three reasons why it’s good for you to believe in free will

Regardless of whether humans do or don’t have free will, psychological research shows it’s beneficial to act as if you do

by Kennon Sheldon

A woman leans against a red column on a train platform, with a moving train blurred in the background.

Goals and motivation

guide

How to know what you really want

From career choices to new purchases, use René Girard’s mimetic theory to resist the herd and forge your own path in life

by Luke Burgis

A person in vibrant, multicoloured activewear energetically poses with arms outstretched, while another stands behind. A jumper is mid-air above them.

Freedom and choice

film

Pablo has a simple dream – to spread joy. But the reality is more complicated

Directed by Daniel Ifans

Freedom and choice

idea

Why not driving is my own form of resistance

As romantic petrochemical-fuelled narratives slip into the past, I’ve found my own kind of freedom in a life without a car

by Vicky Grut

A wooden box filled with vintage black-and-white photographs, showing portraits and various scenes, some faded with age.

Parenting and families

idea

I’m childfree by choice. Should I feel guilty about ending my line?

My uterus is not my ancestors’ vessel for future progeny. What’s the impact of my choice on my family’s genetic lineage?

by Starre Vartan

A dish of roasted chicken garnished with lemon slices, bean sprouts, and fresh mint in a clay pot, with a person arranging lemon slices on a nearby plate.

Food and drink

film

Founding the ‘world’s best’ restaurant made Sally happy. So did selling it

Directed by Ben Proudfoot