Civic life
Civic life
idea
Don’t be stoic: Roman Stoicism’s origins show its perniciousness
Stoicism might help you as an individual. But we need a philosophy that doesn’t dull us to the injustices of the world
by Henry Gruber
Civic life
idea
You want people to do the right thing? Save them the guilt trip
If you want to inspire people to do the right thing, don’t guilt-trip them. Positive emotions are a more powerful motivator
by Claudia R Schneider
Human nature
idea
The radical aristocrat who put kindness on a scientific footing
Peter Kropotkin took on social Darwinism, casting evolution in a cooperative light and laying the groundwork for mutual aid
by Lydia Syson
Virtues and vices
idea
As the Ancient Greeks knew, frankness is an essential virtue
Who can speak truth to the leaders? The story of parrhesía, from classical Greece to Christian martyrs and beyond
by Hartmut Leppin
Values and beliefs
idea
Popper was right about the link between certainty and extremism
In terms of irrational confidence, many people at opposite ends of the political spectrum seem to have something in common
by Thomas Costello & Shauna Bowes
Nature and the environment
idea
What does water want? Most humans seem to have forgotten
Asking what water wants sounds a bit mystical, even radical. But it’s a practical, proven path to creating a better world
by Erica Gies
Artists and art history
idea
What art history reveals about the rise of anti-feminist women
How can anyone favour a patriarchal system that routinely harms them? On Susanna and the Elders and anti-feminist women
by Paula Keller
Ethics
idea
On the moral obligation to stop shit-stirring
Utilitarians provoke to elicit reflection, but we need earnest advice, not shit-stirring, to face complex moral challenges
by Nicholas Agar
Civic life
idea
Ralph Waldo Emerson would really hate your Twitter feed
For Ralph Waldo Emerson, political activism was full of empty gestures done in bad faith. Abolition called for true heroism
by Peter Wirzbicki
Emotion regulation
idea
To heal emotional inflammation, let distress inspire change
To tend to the wound of emotional inflammation, connect with your feelings, look to the sky, then give back to the world
by Stacey Colino & Lise Van Susteren
Dance
idea
Lockdown dancing is both a solo conversation and a mass grieving
As both Martha Graham and Hannah Arendt knew, being alone – in dance or in conversation – is a way to explore connection
by Dana Naomy Mills
Civic life
idea
We are all caught in a pessimism trap but there is a way out
When the world is going to hell in a handcart, it’s easy to fall into the pessimism trap. But it’s not the right thing to do
by Jennifer M Morton