Stories and literature

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Painting of two weasels playing among trees in a vibrantly coloured landscape.

Communication and language

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For this unsung philosopher, metaphors make life an adventure

Susanne K Langer understood the indispensable power of metaphors, which allow us to say new things with old words

by Sue Curry Jansen & Jeff Pooley

An ancient Greek clay jug with red stripes and inscriptions against a dark background.

Communication and language

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I am an article about the speaking objects of ancient Greece

Talkative drinking cups and threatening oil flasks tell us how the written word asserted its authority in an oral society

by Teddy Fassberg

Photo of two men in dark clothing sitting and smiling at a round table in a dimly lit room with glasses.

Stories and literature

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How to tell a better story

Personal stories have the power to connect, entertain, persuade. Use a pro storyteller’s tips to pick and prepare a great one

by Micaela Blei

A stylised figure drawn in glowing red lines stands on a cliff reaching towards a dark sky full of stars above a calm sea. The scene has a mystical atmosphere.

Symbols and myth

film

A Navajo creation story illustrates why humans must forge their own path

Directed by Dallin Penman

Photo of people in a sunny square with bikes and scooters, near Les Tontons and a large building advertisement in Bordeaux.

Stories and literature

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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

A young couple in handcuffs lean against a 1950s police car beneath a brooding prairie sky

Mind and brain

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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

Photo of wooden bookshelves filled with books, small decor items and framed pictures in a cosy room setting.

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

Abstract painting of people in a park; a man in a suit walks, a woman in a green dress stands, and another person sits on a bench reading.

Virtues and vices

film

A simple morality tale finds rich depth in the hands of a master animator

A film by Georges Schwizgebel

Photo of a woman with curly hair comforting an injured woman in a crowd, whose nose is bleeding.

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

Painting of a mysterious woman with long dark hair and a snake, set against an orange and black background.

Sex and sexuality

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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

Cubist painting of fragmented books and a glass on a table with geometric shapes in blue, brown and grey tones.

Stories and literature

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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

Open book with sketches of a handgun on the left page and a peach with geometric lines on the right page, on a dark surface.

Poetry

film

An English teacher asks his class: ‘What’s the opposite of a gun?’

Directed by Anna Samo and Lisa LaBracio