Why it can be sublime to love someone who doesn’t love you back
Unrequited love might be bitter and painful, but it is also the ultimate expression of your humanity. Don’t fight it
by Alexandra Gustafson
Love
How to ease the pain of heartache
You’re experiencing a profound form of grief that can make you physically ill. These steps will give you a chance to heal
by Ziella Bryars
Love shouldn’t be blind or mad. Instead, fall rationally in love
Blind, all-consuming love goes against your interests and impedes your flourishing. Submit your love to rational scrutiny
by Berit Brogaard
How to explore ethical non-monogamy
Before enjoying the freedoms of a more open relationship, get a handle on the practical and emotional complexities ahead
by Meg Wilson
How to enjoy being single
‘Happily ever after’ is a romantic myth. Defy society’s singlism and discover ways to embrace a joyful, independent life
by David Robson
How to be more secure in your relationships
Too clingy – or too scared to commit? Your attachment style is rooted in your childhood, but you can change it
by Graham Johnston & Matt Wotton
Why it takes humour to sustain a long-term relationship
Maintaining a long and happy relationship requires a specific skillset. Learning to laugh at yourself and together is key
by Enrico Gnaulati
How to think differently about love
Poets, philosophers and scientists all tell stories about the nature of romantic love. It can be liberating to critique them
by Arina Pismenny
Working, flirting and sex: courtship in 18th-century France
Flirting, sex and affection: working-class couples courting in 18th-century France show they are not so different from today
by Julie Hardwick
The problem with love is deciding who’s doing the dishes
The modern rhetoric of love is all about caring and sharing, and very little about equality and justice. Can philosophy help?
by Patricia Marino
Does it matter if your romantic partner is similar to you?
From traits like extraversion to specific habits, there are many ways a couple can match. New research tests whether it helps
by Phuong Linh L Nguyen & Moin Syed
How to save a romantic relationship
Even couples on the brink of separation can find a way forward. See what’s possible with some ‘nonbinding experiments’
by Peter Fraenkel
Your partner’s infidelity needn’t be a relationship catastrophe
Infidelity needn’t end a relationship: many people have affairs for reasons that have nothing to do with their partner
by Dylan Selterman
Love’s contradictions: Catullus on the agony of infatuation
Behold a man tortured on the rack, pulled apart by love and hate: how to understand Catullus’s best-known poem
by Armand D’Angour
How to make a long-distance relationship work
Whether an hour or an ocean apart, there will be challenges, but this therapist shows how to make the most of the upsides
by Charlie Huntington
Rituals create community by translating our love into action
For the Confucian Xunzi, love and gratitude are not just feelings in response to events but possibilities for social action
by Curie Virág