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Society

Essays and videos on social issues, history, political life and the future
Models of antiquity | Aeon
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Politics and government

Models of antiquity

Radicals in the Age of Revolution saw the classical world as a common inheritance that could aid their fight for liberty

Francesca Langer

The Swedish theory of love | Aeon
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Political philosophy

The Swedish theory of love

All countries must balance the freedom of individuals with the demands of the community. Sweden’s solution is unique

Lars Trägårdh

Mao’s mango cult | Aeon
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Nations and empires

The strange tale of how mangoes became hallowed objects in Maoist China

6 minutes

Guide to a foreign past | Aeon
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The ancient world

Guide to a foreign past

The iconoclastic French historian Paul Veyne illuminated the past by showing how deeply alien it is to the present

Carlos Noreña

At the Kremlin in 1943 | Aeon
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Religion

At the Kremlin in 1943

Stalin presented Orthodox leaders with a proposal: the Soviet state that had destroyed their Church would bring it back

Kathryn David

After the mother tongues | Aeon
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Global history

After the mother tongues

Cultural exchange between Iran and India led to the creation of literary histories that inspired modern nationalism

Alexander Jabbari

The Parthenon Marbles | Aeon
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Global history

The strange journey of the Parthenon Marbles to the British Museum

10 minutes

Hitozukuri | Aeon
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Education

Hitozukuri

Japan’s Cold War education policy used religion to ‘make’ the ideal humans needed by its nascent economy. Did it work?

Jolyon Baraka Thomas

The other Cleopatra | Aeon
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The ancient world

The other Cleopatra

Daughter of Cleopatra and Mark Antony, she became the influential queen of a mysterious, abundant North African kingdom

Jane Draycott

It never existed | Aeon
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Global history

It never existed

The idea of a ‘precolonial’ Africa is theoretically vacuous, racist and plain wrong about the continent’s actual history

Olúfẹ́mi Táíwò

Wanderlust of the ancients | Aeon
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The ancient world

Wanderlust of the ancients

The Roman Empire enabled an early version of globalisation that offered travellers adventure, novelty and opportunity

Fabio Fernandes

An unholy alliance | Aeon
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Politics and government

An unholy alliance

Authoritarian leaders who play the religious card are not mere hypocrites. There’s something far more troubling going on

Suzanne Schneider

Collective wrongs | Aeon
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Ethics

Collective wrongs

Even when individual perpetrators and victims are dead, states and institutions have a responsibility to make restitutions

Joshua Stein

The Calvinist conquest | Aeon
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Religion

The Calvinist conquest

In the 17th century, Dutch proselytisers set out for Asia, Africa and the Americas. The legacy of their travels endures

Charles H Parker

Black King of Songs | Aeon
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Global history

Black King of Songs

His communism brought the great American singer Paul Robeson trouble in the US, but helped make him a hero in China

Gao Yunxiang

The discontent of Russia | Aeon
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Nations and empires

The discontent of Russia

Lenin envisioned Soviet unity. Stalin called Russia ‘first among equals’. Yet Russian nationalism never went away

Joy Neumeyer

Our trip to Antioch | Aeon
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The ancient world

Our trip to Antioch

Ancient Romans bought mementos to commemorate their travels. These speak eloquently of their world, if we care to listen

Maggie Popkin

Golden jubilee | Aeon
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Human rights and justice

Portugal stole Goa’s lands and narratives. Can they ever truly be returned?

19 minutes

With respect and friendship | Aeon
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Global history

With respect and friendship

For a century before the rise of European empires, Britons and North Africans lived together in amicable peace

Nat Cutter

The problem with ‘han’ 한 恨 | Aeon
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Film and visual culture

The problem with ‘han’ 한 恨

Korean culture is characterised by an untranslatably profound sorrow and regret. Or is that just another stereotype?

Minsoo Kang

Tales of two jackals | Aeon
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Stories and literature

Tales of two jackals

Kalila and Dimna’s ancient parables on power delight as much as they instruct. But their moral maxims are ethically murky

Kevin Blankinship

The power of water | Aeon
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Global history

The power of water

Far more potent than oil or gold, water is a stream of geopolitical force that runs deep, feeding crops and building nations

Giulio Boccaletti

Those born later | Aeon
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History

Those born later

How does a nation begin to take responsibility for its past wrongs? The German case suggests courage comes locally

Helmut Walser Smith

The chocolate route | Aeon
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Food and drink

The chocolate route

The humble cocoa bean’s journey from its Amerindian origins to worldwide dominance is a lesson in the power of trade

Irene Fattacciu