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Virtues and vices

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

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Painting of three 18th-century men in discussion, one holding an illustration. A dog lies on the floor.

essayVirtues and vices

David Hume vs literature

Hume distrusted literature and worked to discredit character sketches as legitimate forms of philosophy

Katie Ebner-Landy

Black and white photo of a woman and man sitting at a kitchen table appearing deep in thought or conversation.

essayVirtues and vices

Awkward silences

What is it about lulls in conversation that make them so very uncomfortable? It has to do with how we connect with each other

Rebecca Roache

Clay animation of a person pondering at a table with a drink can, against a dark background.

videoPersonality

A ‘little thief’ turned career criminal recounts a life on the wrong side of the law

5 minutes

An older man in a red cap and printed T-shirt looking into the distance.

videoVirtues and vices

Why Bennie tried to disappear, and what happened when he was found decades later

16 minutes

Vintage film poster with illustrated women underwater surrounded by bubbles text reads “Primitive and Exciting”.

essayPublic health

A very American fear

Moral panics about erotica have coursed through the country’s history. Why do so many Americans think of porn as harm?

Rebecca L Davis

Illustration of a hand dropping a coin into another hand within an eye-shaped frame on a textured background.

videoVirtues and vices

Why Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Adam Smith were divided on the virtues of vanity

5 minutes

Photo of a silver inflatable balloon floating in the sky over a blurred brownish background, resembling a flying saucer.

videoInformation and communication

Coverage of the ‘balloon boy’ hoax forms a withering indictment of for-profit news

17 minutes

Black-and-white photo of a woman in a lab coat examining maize at a table, baskets of maize to the side, in a laboratory.

essayVirtues and vices

Against humility

Intellectual humility has recently been hailed as the key to thinking well. The story of Barbara McClintock proves otherwise

Rachel Fraser

A busy beach scene with children on donkeys, people in the sea, a man reading on a sun lounger, and a dog urinating on a sun shade.

essayVirtues and vices

Make it awkward!

Rather than being a cringey personal failing, awkwardness is a collective rupture – and a chance to rewrite the social script

Alexandra Plakias

Cyclists in a professional race riding in rainy conditions. The leading cyclist in a blue jersey raises his arms in victory, with other cyclists closely following behind on the wet road. Everyone is wearing helmets and sunglasses for protection.

essaySports and games

Performance-enhancing vices

Selfishness channels ambition, envy drives competition, pride aids the win. Does it take a bad person to be a good athlete?

Sabrina Little

Drawing of a child pointing at a person carrying a giant cupcake, with an arm and hand emerging from the frosting.

videoEthics

For Iris Murdoch, selfishness is a fault that can be solved by reframing the world

6 minutes

Elderly man in a cap and jacket sits on concrete steps outdoors holding a cup, with greenery and trees in the background.

videoLove and friendship

After his son’s terrorist attack, Azdyne seeks healing – and his granddaughter

25 minutes

Several deaf inmates sit on chairs in a circle, engaged in an ASL conversation. Room has white walls, white chairs, flags and a podium in the background.

videoHuman rights and justice

‘I know that change is possible’ – a Deaf prison chaplain’s gospel of hope

18 minutes

A young child on a beach beside a sign that reads “No one is too small to make a difference” in colourful letters.

essayVirtues and vices

Be what you hope for

In the face of global challenges, Augustine offers a way between the despair of pessimism and the presumption of optimism

Michael Lamb

A painting of a man in a military uniform, sitting on a chair with a solemn expression, against a dark red background.

essayMood and emotion

The joy of sulk

Full of implicit rules and paradoxes, sulking is a marvellous example of intense communication without clear declaration

Rebecca Roache

A woman and a man are having a conversation on the street, standing in front of old storefronts and a wooden barricade.

essayMood and emotion

In praise of irritation

Unlike anger, irritation has neither glamour nor radicalism on its side. Yet it might just be the mood we need right now

Will Rees

A person in religious attire pours a golden beer from a labelled bottle into a glass with “Maredret” written on it.

essayVirtues and vices

The virtue of discretion

When the rules break down, you must judge what to do on your own. Discretion is necessary for navigating the muddle of life

Lorraine Daston

View of a snowy courtyard from above with two people standing near a beige car.

essayMental health

Secrets hurt their holders

Holding back the truth can take a huge toll on your relationships and your mental health. Why? And is there a better way?

Michael Slepian

Man on recumbent bicycle and another on road bike cycling outdoors with cloudy sky in the background.

videoVirtues and vices

From violent criminal to loving parent – a son’s story of his father’s transformation

23 minutes

A swan stands on a busy beach with people swimming and relaxing in the background.

essayVirtues and vices

The delights of mischief

Mischievousness requires humour, wit and a playful humaneness: qualities that make for a particular kind of virtue

Alex Moran

A protester holds a sign reading ‘IT IS WORSE MUCH WORSE THAN YOU THINK’ amid a crowd in an urban setting.

essayVirtues and vices

Look on the dark side

We must keep the flame of pessimism burning: it is a virtue for our deeply troubled times, when crude optimism is a vice

Mara van der Lugt

Three people in dinosaur costumes hold “Go Vegan” signs while walking across a busy city intersection.

essayVirtues and vices

Is virtue signalling a vice?

Proclaiming one’s own goodness is deeply annoying. Yet signalling theory explains why it’s a peculiarly powerful manoeuvre

Tadeg Quillien

Black-and-white photo of adult and child walking among old stone structures on a rocky path, set against an expansive landscape.

essayEthics

Forget morality

Moral philosophy is bogus, a mere substitute for God that licenses ugly emotions. Here are five reasons to reject it

Ronnie de Sousa

Illuminated lighthouse with beam of light, standing tall over dense green foliage during dusk.

essayVirtues and vices

Lies and honest mistakes

Our crisis of public knowledge is an ethical crisis. Rewarding ‘truthfulness’ above ‘truth’ is a step towards a solution

Richard V Reeves