Identity
![A display of various hats, including a red floral hat, a black hat with a coloured brim, a blue hat, and a beige lacy hat, shown on stand in a shop window. A blurred street with a bicycle is visible outside.](https://images.aeonmedia.co/images/44858ff7-a79b-466a-99fb-1c27f41adf2c/rt-final-gettyimages-523291236.jpg?width=3840&quality=75&format=auto)
Identity
idea
You have multiple ‘social identities’ – here’s how to manage them
As social beings, our identities are bound up with different groups – here’s how to juggle all the various hats you wear
by Anna K Zinn
![A young woman in a contemporary apartment is reflected but partially obscured in the plate glass windows](https://images.aeonmedia.co/images/1eb039bb-134a-486d-9cb8-f333b7a018ec/rt-gettyimages-688987488.jpg?width=3840&quality=75&format=auto)
Place
idea
The divided self: does where I live make me who I am?
At home in Delhi, I am a more social, interactive person. A quiet balcony in Frankfurt gave me space to be by myself
by Anandi Mishra
![Wooden shelves filled with books, framed pictures, small ornaments, a bowl, and various decorative items.](https://images.aeonmedia.co/images/fca8b519-5d00-4541-9746-970863ae376f/original.jpg?width=3840&quality=75&format=auto)
Stories and literature
guide
How to nurture a personal library
An escape, a sanctuary, a place of pleasure, a memoir. Take these steps to ensure your library is just what you want it to be
by Freya Howarth
![A woman reclines on a sofa writing in a notebook while a man stands nearby drinking a beverage in a brightly lit room with books and plants.](https://images.aeonmedia.co/images/f4d97000-a804-4afe-972d-4ed1cf2ca8c8/original.jpg?width=3840&quality=75&format=auto)
Love
film
Each love story is its own small universe. This is Essence and Jihaari’s
Directed by Barry Jenkins
![Painting depicting pioneers with covered wagons and oxen travelling through a valley, with mountains, a river, and people on horseback in the background.](https://images.aeonmedia.co/images/c4cb268b-71a9-456c-aec6-98f7d3bddc87/v2-rt-final-gettyimages-3094186.jpg?width=3840&quality=75&format=auto)
Identity
idea
I rebuilt my self-esteem by changing the story of who I am
I once clung to a dubious family legend to help me cope with a difficult childhood. I’ve since found a better story to tell
by Patricia Olsen
![A smiling neurodiverse child holds a red balloon. In the background people hold balloons of various colours](https://images.aeonmedia.co/images/a18337c8-35ae-4777-8561-3a3f1cc9da86/original.jpg?width=3840&quality=75&format=auto)
Neurodiversity
idea
Essentialism is insidious – but it might also be helpful
Stereotypes are obviously bad, but believing you share an essence with others could help people who feel marginalised
by Ariana Orvell & Alexa Lebrón-Cruz
![Person holding a vintage photograph featuring six people standing in a field with trees in the background.](https://images.aeonmedia.co/images/02306904-f3b7-4de3-b7a7-031ab60856e3/original.jpg?width=3840&quality=75&format=auto)
Photography
film
Hawaii, reflected in intricate and dignified slow photography
Directed by Jake Viramontez
![As a man holds open one side of a double glass door, another man opens the other side. The glass in the doors is almost opaque](https://images.aeonmedia.co/images/7eaf3953-efd7-4d39-aa59-59ce201f3777/original.jpg?width=3840&quality=75&format=auto)
Disability
idea
Blindness transformed my social world, and I changed with it
One of the biggest challenges in becoming blind late in life has been overcoming sighted people’s negative assumptions
by Jeffry Ricker
![Two men near a graffiti-covered wall with chipped paint, one standing and gesturing, the other sitting on the pavement.](https://images.aeonmedia.co/images/9b015d33-8c83-48d1-9ebc-2a0a4dc8c104/original.jpg?width=3840&quality=75&format=auto)
Cultural diversity
idea
Cultural differences are far more nuanced than East vs West
It’s simply not the case that ‘Eastern’ cultures are relationally-minded, while ‘Western’ societies are individualistic
by Matt Huston
![A Jewish man wearing glasses and a platchige biber hat, speaking into a microphone at a comedy club, with a brick wall and a blurred sign in the background.](https://images.aeonmedia.co/images/29826279-a34b-4e14-ad12-08211e7823d5/original.jpg?width=3840&quality=75&format=auto)
Laughter and comedy
film
An Orthodox Jew struggles to balance his two callings – religion and comedy
Directed by Jonathan Miller