History of emotions

Early 20th-century colour photo of a family sitting and standing outside a rustic building on a cobblestone street.
PARENTING AND FAMILIES

The history of family offers a liberating view of custom and love

Chronicling the families of the past shows just how much family values, feelings and decision-making can morph over time

by Katie Barclay

Painting of a girl with flowing hair holding books, standing on a windy path under a grey sky.
MEMORY AND NOSTALGIA

Before it was ‘bittersweet’, nostalgia was seen as a parasite

Early modern ideas about nostalgia, infused with the elements of horror, invite us to think more deeply about human longing

by Jac Lewis

Painting of a woman with large eyes wearing dark clothes surrounded by bold colours including red and yellow.
GRIEF

The loss remains, so why does intense grief usually fade?

Grief’s ‘double vision’ beholds both the bereaved and dead. Recognising this duality helps explain our ability to move on

by Berislav Marušić

Black and white photo of a couple kissing in a car, focus on a hand wearing a ring and watch embracing the partner.
LOVE

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

Ancient clay figurine of a woman with a veil, arms crossed. The surface is textured. Image shows a simple, worn design.
HISTORY OF EMOTIONS

To ancient Assyrians, the liver was the seat of happiness

Cutting-edge computational techniques are shedding light on how the emotional experiences of past cultures compare to ours

by Juha Lahnakoski & Ellie Bennett

Photo of a person falling near running bulls on a cobblestone street during a bull run event, with legs and hooves in motion.
HISTORY OF EMOTIONS

Schadenfreude: why do we find joy in the pain felt by others?

A brief history of schadenfreude – taking pleasure in the misfortune of another – from ancient China to Charlie Chaplin

by David P Barash

Painting of three children in a field of flowers with trees in the background under a cloudy sky.
HISTORY OF PSYCHOLOGY AND PSYCHIATRY

In psychoanalysis, nostalgia was a sickness. It needn’t be

Nostalgia was, in Freud’s day, an illness steeped in the past. Today, it can be a joyful emotion that reframes the future

by Agnes Arnold-Forster

Photo of a dinosaur fossil embedded in rock and soil, with visible bone structures partially exposed.
RITUALS AND CELEBRATIONS

Digging for answers in a cave filled with Neanderthal skeletons

When a team of researchers returned to an Iraqi cave believed to be a Neanderthal burial site, here’s what they found

by Shayla Love

Photo of a red and white cow sign above the word “SEAFOOD” against a rural backdrop with a red barn.
LEARNING AND EDUCATION

Perplexed? Embrace it! Confusion is a symptom of learning

Perplexed? Embrace it! Confusion is a sign of learning, but the key is finding the sweet spot of productive confusion

by Juliette Vazard

Painting of a woman in a Victorian dress resting her head on her hand at a table with a bowl and a book by a window.
HISTORY OF EMOTIONS

The fear that trashy media will rot your brain goes way back

Keeping up with the Faerie Queene: from early modern romances to reality TV, does bingeing ‘lowbrow’ culture rot the brain?

by James Waddell

Black and white photo of people playing on a beach. A woman sits on a man’s shoulders holding a ball, others move around them.
HISTORY OF EMOTIONS

The journeys taken by emotion words shape our inner lives

Changes to the meanings of euphoria, enthusiasm and ecstasy over time chart the ever-shifting territory of the emotions

by Tim Lomas

Daguerreotype portrait of a woman in 19th-century attire sitting with a hat on a table, framed in ornate gold and red.
ANXIETY

After many false starts, this might be the true age of anxiety

If anxiety is more common than ever, it’s also more treatable. But excessive nervousness wasn’t always taken so seriously

by Jason Schnittker

A painting of a woman with brown hair in a white blouse with a large green bow against a dark blue background.
EMOTIONS

Are you sure you know what emotions are?

It’s tricky to define what an emotion is: is surprise one, or something else? Here are a few simple rules to get started

by Andrew Ortony

An old illustrated map of Northern Europe featuring mythical sea creatures compass roses and detailed land formations.
HISTORY OF IDEAS

How 12th-century Genoese merchants invented the idea of risk

From the docks of 12th-century Genoa to the gambling tables of today, risk is a story that we tell ourselves about the future

by Karla Mallette

Painting of a traditional Chinese funeral, people in white robes mourning around a deceased figure on a table.
RITUALS AND CELEBRATIONS

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

Photo of a newborn baby sleeping in a white box with a blanket on a patterned carpet background.
PARENTING AND FAMILIES

Finns start life safe and sound with a baby box from the government

In Finland, mothers can choose a cash benefit or a baby box – 95 per cent choose the baby box, a richly emotional object

by Tanja Vahtikari