Philosophy

Essays and videos on philosophy, the history of ideas, ethics and life’s big questions

Beauty and aesthetics Bioethics Comparative philosophy Cosmopolitanism Death Ethics History of ideas Knowledge Logic and probability Meaning and the good life Metaphysics Philosophy of language Philosophy of mind Philosophy of religion Philosophy of science Political philosophy Thinkers and theories Values and beliefs Virtues and vices

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Two children on a bike passing a group of people standing outside a large metal gate with buildings in the background.

essayWork

Victims and villains

In Southeast Asia’s scam compounds, workers are being enslaved but the boundary between victim and perpetrator is blurred

Ivan Franceschini & Ling Li

Engraving showing a view of the Portuguese town of Cacheo with a fort, trees and sailing ships on a river.

essayGlobal history

A lesson in coexistence

The 17th-century town Cacheu was a hub of West African and European cultures, languages and beliefs (and run by women)

Toby Green

A baseball with red stitching on a black background partially lit from the top left corner.

essayPhysics

Playing in flatland

Physicists believe a third class of particles – anyons – could exist, but only in 2D. What kind of existence is that?

Elay Shech

Illustration of a person in an armchair looking out at a full moon through a window with bookshelves in the background.

videoMeaning and the good life

Would immortality offer a curse of boredom or endless novelty?

6 minutes

Sepia-toned photo of a man addressing a crowd of strikers outside a brick building wearing early 20th-century attire.

essayPolitics and government

Our unfinished republics

Economic republicanism shows us how to achieve authentic freedom: citizens require economic as well as political power

Sean Irving

essayHistory of ideas

The shape of time

In the 19th century, the linear idea of time became dominant, forever changing how those in the West experience the world

Emily Thomas

Painting of industrial workers and scientists performing tasks; includes gears, blueprints and factory elements.

essayPolitical philosophy

Landholder vs stockholder

In 1752, David Hume discerned that wealth was becoming untethered from land. Here lies the origin of our political divisions

Catherine Nichols

People lowering a wicker coffin into a grave in a green landscape with hills and a river in the background.

essayDeath

How to become a tree

Many people today want to commit their remains to rejuvenating the planet. But are these green deaths just greenwashing?

Hannah Gould & Georgina Robinson

A vibrant street scene with decorated vehicles, colourful flags and banners in front of a large urban building.

essayThinkers and theories

The tragedy of Trần Đức Thảo

How the persecuted Vietnamese philosopher became one of the first theorists of the divide between colonised and coloniser

Rory O’Sullivan

Silhouetted figure at a desk with US flag nearby, backlit by sunlight through curtains.

essayPolitical philosophy

Incandescent anger

Politics today is driven by grievances that can never be assuaged. For democracy’s survival, we must grapple with this dynamic

Paul Katsafanas

Black-and-white illustration of a group of people in a room with a cassette player, a person holding a guitar, and a person reading a book.

videoWar and peace

In rare, candid interviews, Russians discuss life amid war

13 minutes

Digital illustration of a human skeleton scan on a futuristic medical interface, showing data and analysis metrics.

essayMedicine

Are doctors replaceable?

Medical error kills hundreds of thousands yearly. If AI is sophisticated enough to help, doctors must not stand in the way

Charlotte Blease

London’s Gherkin building lit at night with Canary Wharf skyscrapers glowing in the hazy background.

essayHistory of ideas

Philosopher of pride

For Mandeville, humankind has a bottomless need to be liked: it is this perennial craving that forms the foundation of society

Andrea Branchi

Two felt figures sit together facing a desert landscape under a warm sky.

videoLove and friendship

A millennial and her centenarian friend take a unique road trip

15 minutes

Pope Francis wearing white robes waters a freshly planted tree from a wooden bowl, a man holding a book and a woman wearing a colourful headdress beside him and a cameraman in the background

essayReligion

Green dominion

Coursing through Catholicism is a radical tradition of environmental justice that will help combat the climate crisis

Mike Mariani

A group of people in striped clothing and headscarves standing in shallow water, raising hands towards a cloudy sky.

essayPhilosophy of religion

Undefinable yet indispensable

Despite centuries of trying, the term ‘religion’ has proven impossible to define. Then why does it remain so necessary?

Kwame Anthony Appiah

Photo of a musician in a hat playing a double bass with a microphone in front, set against a dark background.

videoHistory of ideas

I am, therefore I think – how Heidegger radically reframed being

13 minutes

Photo of an old computer monitor discarded in nature, surrounded by grass and twigs under a cloudy sky.

essayEthics

Can machines suffer?

We once denied the suffering of animals in pain. As AIs grow more complex, we run the danger of making the same mistake

Conor Purcell

Aerial photo of people in colourful clothes standing in line casting long shadows on a dirt path surrounded by greenery.

essayPolitical philosophy

The empty ideology

Liberalism hasn’t delivered on its promises in Africa. The alternative will be found in ideas rooted in Africa’s own soil

Gabriel Asuquo

A black hole, showing a glowing orange-red ring surrounded by darkness, captured by a telescope.

essayCosmology

Cosmic imposters

We know that black holes are strange, but they could be hiding something even weirder beyond their horizons

Gideon Koekoek

Abstract painting with a guitar and geometric shapes in vibrant colours including yellow, green and blue.

essayMusic

The guitarist’s palette

In the hands of a great musician, the gloriously simple guitar can create the most complex works of art. Here’s how

Craig Ogden

Watercolour painting of a person crouching, sketched with soft colours and lines, on a light background.

essayPhilosophy of mind

From cells to selves

Contemplating the world requires a body, and a body requires an immune system: the rungs of life create the stuff of thought

Anna Ciaunica

A cat sitting on ancient ruins with tall columns under a clear blue sky.

essayThinkers and theories

Nothing alive is alien to me

Who belongs to our moral community? The Greek philosopher Empedocles had an answer: all life, from humans to the laurel bush

Tristan Moyle

Black and white photo of a line of people marching on a city street holding signs protesting against the draft for the Vietnam War.

essayWar and peace

Not in our name

The gravest of all decisions, to go to war, happens without the consent of the people. This is a great flaw in democracy

Vincenza Falletti