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.
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
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
History of ideas
idea
I smell, therefore I am. On the philosophy of the olfactory
To truly grip us, philosophy must engage with the practical and animalistic. It’s time to stop turning its nose up at smell
by Simon Hajdini
Altered states
idea
The small pleasures in life can produce moments of rapture
Rapture is a delight that turns us both towards the object of attention and towards oneself, resulting in a sense of freedom
by Christopher Hamilton
Knowledge and reason
idea
Ancient Greek antilogic is the craft of suspending judgment
Sophists like Protagoras used the rhetoric of antilogic to escape from the illusion of truth and make room for uncertainty
by Robin Reames
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
Thinking and intelligence
guide
How to think like a Bayesian
In a world of few absolutes, it pays to be able to think clearly about probabilities. These five ideas will get you started
by Michael G Titelbaum
Knowledge and reason
idea
How Nietzsche’s insights can help fight fanaticism
Fanatical thinking is based on a narrative of resentment toward outgroups. Nietzsche offers two ways of changing the script
by Paul Katsafanas
Thinkers and theories
guide
How to live like a Cynic
Take inspiration from Diogenes, the philosopher in a barrel, and transform your negativity into a liberating force for good
by Ansgar Allen
Learning and education
idea
Lessons about learning from ancient Greek philosophers
What Aristotle and Epicurus can teach us about learning through collaboration, movement, place and embodiment
by Tom Bielik
Fear and phobia
idea
To fear well is virtuous and more important than being brave
Fear is not the enemy, but a real and legitimate emotion. To truly support another in their fear, let them give it a voice
by Ami Harbin
Ethics
guide
How to think about ethical dilemmas
Learning about ethical theories won’t give you easy answers, but will increase your confidence in how you choose to live
by Timm Triplett
The self
idea
When Nietzsche said ‘become who you are’, this is what he meant
Behind the philosopher’s cryptic phrase is an invocation to sculpt your ideal self out of the hard stone of your psyche
by Ryan A Bush
Emotion regulation
idea
The Stoics were right – emotional control is good for the soul
Both neuroscience and psychotherapy agree that you can change your mental framework as the Stoic Marcus Aurelius described
by István Darabán