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Meaning and the good life

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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A surfer in a wetsuit emerging from a large turquoise wave with white foam crashing around.

essaySports and games

The secret

At the heart of surfing, whether you’re a kook or a famous charger, is the pursuit of moments so pure they clean you out

M M Owen

Black and white photo of two girls in dresses touching foreheads while sitting on a rock in a field of daisies.

videoChildhood and adolescence

‘Do worms cry?’ – and other questions collected from the mind of a curious child

4 minutes

Photo of deep space with a pale blue dot in the distance against a dark background, featuring faint light streaks.

essayCosmology

Just a pale blue dot

When we see the Earth as ‘a mote of dust suspended in a sunbeam’ what do we learn about human significance?

Tim Bayne

Photo of dandelion seeds in flight against a blurred green forest background.

videoMeaning and the good life

Why Orwell urged his readers to celebrate the spring, cynics be damned

11 minutes

Black and white photo of a firing squad in a wooded area with snow on the ground, soldiers aiming rifles at standing figures.

essayDeath

The last letter

Condemned to death by firing squad, French resistance fighters put pen to paper. Their dying words can teach us how to live

Daniel R Brunstetter

Photo of people walking outdoors carrying trays of plants, surrounded by bushes and greenery.

essayMeaning and the good life

Welcome to the Chaoscene

The climate crisis is here. In order to thrive in these dangerous and precarious times, we must build resilient communities

Rupert Read

Black and white photo of a man in a suit sitting indoors with a vase and branches.

videoMeaning and the good life

Leading 1950s thinkers on the search for happiness in trying times

29 minutes

Photo of a person sitting in a dimly lit church with stained glass windows and sun rays filtering through.

videoSpirituality

Through rituals of prayer, a monk cultivates a quietly radical concept of freedom

4 minutes

Photograph of two silhouetted figures on a sunlit path surrounded by dark geometric shadows and structures.

essayKnowledge

The penumbral plunge

Diving into the ring of darkness beyond things easily answerable, asking ‘Why?’ questions is what make humans awesome

Eric Schwitzgebel

Ancient fresco showing two figures in flowing robes dancing against a dark blue background, one holding a tambourine.

essayDance and theatre

Why the old man dances

Religious ritual to appease the gods or free expression of human agency? For the ancient Romans, dance could be both

Karin Schlapbach

Ancient stone statues depicting a standing and a reclining Buddha against a natural rock backdrop.

essayPhilosophy of religion

Compassionate time

On his final journey through Asia, Thomas Merton found some peace in the dialectic between refusing the world and loving it

Drew Calvert

A man floating in the sea beneath a dramatic, stormy sky with large, dark clouds.

essayTechnology and the self

We need raw awe

In this tech-vexed age, our life on screens prevents us from experiencing the mysteries and transformative wonder of life

Kirk Schneider

Black and white photo of a teenage girl with dark hair smoking, eyes closed, with a blurred outdoor background.

videoMeaning and the good life

Wander through the English countryside with two teens trying to make sense of the world

10 minutes

Photo of two young Asian women wearing sunglasses sitting in the back of a pickup truck at an outdoor event with American flags and mountains.

videoMeaning and the good life

A Japanese religious community makes an unlikely home in the mountains of Colorado

9 minutes

An old photograph of a man pulling a small cart with a child and belongings, followed by a woman and three children; one child is pushing a stroller.

essayThinkers and theories

Rawls the redeemer

For John Rawls, liberalism was more than a political project: it is the best way to fashion a life that is worthy of happiness

Alexandre Lefebvre

A walking figure made of black shapes, with a pink ticket for “The Moviegoer” by Walker Percy as its body, on a yellow background.

videoMeaning and the good life

‘Everydayness is the enemy’ – excerpts from the existentialist novel ‘The Moviegoer’

2 minutes

A close-up drawing of a face with detailed patterns and a hand touching the face, using earthy tones and texture on a brown background.

essayMeaning and the good life

Beyond authenticity

In her final unfinished work, Hannah Arendt mounted an incisive critique of the idea that we are in search of our true selves

Samantha Rose Hill

Black and white photo of people sitting at a café, taken through a window with reflections. A sign saying ‘BUFFET FROID’ is visible.

essayMeaning and the good life

Philosophy was once alive

I was searching for meaning and purpose so I became an academic philosopher. Reader, you might guess what happened next

Pranay Sanklecha

A vibrant parade with people dressed in colourful, clown-like costumes riding decorated bicycles. They are smiling and laughing as they ride through a crowd of onlookers. Various decorations such as flowers, balloons, and banners add to the festive atmosphere. Trees line the background of the street.

essayWellbeing

Learning to be happier

In order to help improve my students’ mental health, I offered a course on the science of happiness. It worked – but why?

Bruce Hood

A man lies down with his head on a miniature model of buildings and streets, blending into the tiny, urban scene at night.

videoBiography and memoir

The unique life philosophy of Abdi, born in Somalia, living in the Netherlands

29 minutes

Stephen Fry stands at a podium, wearing a checkered blazer, pink shirt, and ‘Choose Love’ badge, speaking with an expressive gesture.

videoMeaning and the good life

Why strive? Stephen Fry reads Nick Cave’s letter on the threat of computed creativity

5 minutes

German man wearing sunglasses and a black cap standing among tall, green cacti, with a serious expression on his face.

videoBeauty and aesthetics

The grit of cacti and the drumbeat of time shape a sculptor’s life philosophy

11 minutes

A close-up shot of one woman holding and comforting another grief-stricken woman

essayAgeing and death

Witness the pain

When loved ones are traumatically lost, bereaved families become accidental activists by turning grief into grievance

Chris Bobel

A shirtless man in jeans lies sleeping beside his 1970s era car on the sandy beach

essayWork

Disengage

Modern life subjects us to all-consuming demands. That’s why we should reflect on what it means to step away from it all

David J Siegel