Stories and literature
Stories and literature
idea
Your life is not a story: why narrative thinking holds you back
Our stories help us make sense of a chaotic world, but they can be harmful and restrictive. There’s a liberating alternative
by Karen Simecek
Mind and brain
idea
What films and literature reveal about the voice in your head
Inner speech is mysterious and hard to study. But movie voiceovers and introspective novels offer fresh ways to understand it
by Shayla Love
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
Symbols and myth
film
A Navajo creation story illustrates why humans must forge their own path
Directed by Dallin Penman
Stories and literature
idea
Fiction has a special power to give us insight into our flaws
Losing yourself in a book, film or show provides a useful mirror for character – one that is hard to access in real life
by Martina Orlandi
Sex and sexuality
idea
My take on ‘Venus in Furs’ as a modern-day dominatrix
My experiences as a 21st-century femdom echo the gendered themes that feature in Leopold von Sacher-Masoch’s 1870 novel
by Gia Marcos
Stories and literature
guide
How to gain more from your reading
There’s more to words than meets the eye. Deepen your appreciation of literature through the art of slow, attentive reading
by Robert DiYanni
Virtues and vices
film
A simple morality tale finds rich depth in the hands of a master animator
A film by Georges Schwizgebel
Grief
idea
After my mom died, I found comfort in a medieval Andalusi tale
Ibn Tufayl’s story of a man mourning the gazelle who raised him helped me appreciate the interconnection of all things
by Veronica Menaldi
Technology and media
idea
What does switching from paper to screens mean for how we read?
It’s well established that we absorb less well when reading on screen. But why? And can we do something to improve it?
by Lili Yu, Sixin Liao, Jan-Louis Kruger & Erik D Reichle
Thinkers and theories
guide
How to deconstruct the world
Don’t believe everything you hear, read and watch. To puncture received ideas about culture, start thinking like Jacques Derrida
by Peter Salmon
Poetry
film
An English teacher asks his class: ‘What’s the opposite of a gun?’
Directed by Anna Samo and Lisa LaBracio