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Sam Dresser

Senior Editor, Aeon+Psyche

Sam has been with Aeon since its launch in 2012. He’s most interested in how to do philosophy and in the continental/analytic divide. History and politics are also amusing to him. He considers Evelyn Waugh to be a very funny writer and enjoys pubs more than he should.

See Sam Dresser’s profile on Aeon

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Written by Sam Dresser

Photo of a man skateboarding beside the ocean with an old car watching a woman in a swimsuit on a sunny day.

Virtues and vices

guide

How to think about pleasure

Weirdly hard to define, much less to feel OK about it, pleasure is a tricky creature. Can philosophy help us lighten up?

by Sam Dresser

Painting of a man seated at a table next to a skull on books, with a patterned curtain in the background.

Death and dying

guide

How to not fear your death

You exist, but one day you won’t. An Epicurean perspective can help you feel less afraid, and even grateful for life’s finitude

by Sam Dresser

Edited by Sam Dresser

An Indigenous Australian man carrying a child on his shoulders walking through bushland observing a ‘cool’ burn (used to control underbrush), with smoke and flames in the background.

Knowledge and reason

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There is knowledge in the land as well as in ourselves

Indigenous Australian knowledge systems understand what Descartes didn’t – the natural world has important things to tell us

by Andrew Kirkpatrick

Black and white photo of people embracing and saying goodbye at a train station.

Love

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It’s possible to become wiser in who you entrust with your love

Love is not merely irrational – there’s a sense in which it’s also based on reason, which means we can get better at it

by Joel Van Fossen

People at night in front of St Basil’s Cathedral in Moscow with a woman waving a large Russian flag in the foreground.

Conflict and conflict resolution

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Does national humiliation explain why wars break out?

For a nation, humiliation isn’t just a feeling – it’s a story. Understanding this can help countries move beyond aggression

by Raamy Majeed

A waterfall under a stormy sky with mist and a building on the left cliff surrounded by trees in the background.

Wonder and the sublime

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How to think about the sublime

An exquisite mix of fear and awe, pleasure and pain, the sublime stretches the imagination and reveals the limits of reason

by Nicole A Hall

Painting of an elderly couple in 16th century attire, man in fur-lined coat and woman in white headdress on green background.

Love

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There’s no good reason to love each other – and that’s a relief

Loving is an unreasonable decision (we are all extremely unpleasant little beasts) and that’s what allows it to survive

by John Kaag

A group of people shown through reflective surfaces creating a layered effect, one wears a purple ribbon.

Communication and language

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To have deeper conversations, try being more of an asshole

Conversation is a game with rules about politeness and norms. To move beyond small talk, you need to risk breaking them

by Idil Çakmur

Photo of a small American flag on a metal barrier surrounded by litter at night.

Civic life

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Disappointment is not just a feeling – it’s a political force

When political regimes fail us, don’t turn to optimism. It’s disappointment that holds the radical potential for change

by Rafael Holmberg

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

Grief

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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

World map illustration showing physical geography with oceans, continents and elevation.

Ethics

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What makes a map ‘good’? On the ethics of cartography

Rendering the world in a responsible way means wrestling with what gets depicted on a map, how, and for whom

by Nat Case

Painting with surreal figures including a fish-headed person and abstract human forms with a dark sky.

Communication and language

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Let me open a treasure chest to explain how metaphor works

Once maligned by philosophers, metaphors are a key communication tool for extending the power of literal speech

by Elek Lane

A classical painting of two women and a man in a lavishly decorated room with ornate furniture and clothing, 19th century style.

Ethics

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The curious paradox in how we address each other today

While honouring people’s preferred pronouns, we’ve begun to neglect forms of formal address. Perhaps we need a rethink

by David Benatar

A blue sports car and a grey luxury car parked on a city street with people and a Christian Dior shop in the background.

Gender

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The ‘masculinity crisis’ is actually a crisis of self-esteem

There’s a modern belief that talent or effort can carry anyone to the top. It’s a myth that’s especially harmful to men

by Leo Rogers