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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

Blurry photo of a person lying back with head tilted, set against a red and dark background.

essay

Sex and sexuality

Sex and death

Our culture works hard to keep sex and death separate but recharging the libido might provide the release that grief needs

Cody Delistraty

Microscopic view of various microorganisms and particles in a blue liquid, showing a large oval-shaped microorganism amidst smaller particles.

video

Biology

An elegy for a dying microbe explores what we really mean by ‘death’

9 minutes

A colourful, abstract image featuring a large, black and white bird in flight. The background is a swirling mix of purple, orange, and yellow hues. A small figure of a child walks in the distance, casting a long shadow.

essay

Ageing and death

Peregrinations of grief

A friend and a falcon went missing. In pain, I turned to ‘Slaughterhouse-Five’ – and found a new vision of sorrow and time

Emily Polk

A person stands in a sunlit forest, holding a compound bow, and wearing outdoor gear with a backpack.

video

Death

A hunter’s lyrical reflection on the humbling business of being mortal

6 minutes

Black-and white photo of a man wearing glasses and a suit sitting in a chair in front of a blackboard in a classroom.

essay

Thinkers and theories

We’ll meet again

The intrepid logician Kurt Gödel believed in the afterlife. In four heartfelt letters to his mother he explained why

Alexander T Englert

A figure is silhouetted in an older style apartment block window at night. In the distance are taller modern tower block apartments

essay

Cities

The haunting of modern China

In Nanjing, Hong Kong and other Chinese cities, rapid urbanisation is multiplying a fear of death and belief in ghosts

Andrew Kipnis

A person in a lab coat holds an alligator hand puppet and a mouse hand puppet, mimicking an interaction between them.

video

Death

Even in modern secular societies, belief in an afterlife persists. Why?

9 minutes

People walking towards a crashed aeroplane in a snowy field with trees in the background.

video

Meaning and the good life

The world turns vivid, strange and philosophical for one plane crash survivor

16 minutes

Three rams with large curved horns standing on grass near a wooden fence and a small tree in the background.

video

Death

Toby ponders the inner lives of the sheep that roam atop his parents’ graves

6 minutes

Close-up of a tabby cat sleeping with its paws tucked in, showing a peaceful expression with closed eyes and striped fur.

essay

Animals and humans

Goodbye Pixel

Although it felt more like bereavement for a person than the loss of a thing, the death of a pet isn’t exactly like either

Julian Baggini

Elderly couple sitting outdoors, both wearing glasses and light-coloured shirts, with greenery in the background.

video

Ageing and death

When his elderly parents make a suicide pact, Doron struggles to accept their choice

19 minutes

Abstract painting with swirling blue tones and a bright yellow centre, resembling a starry night sky. A dark form lies to the left.

video

Rituals and celebrations

In a Mongolian wind burial, a body falls on land before getting swept up to the heavens

6 minutes

A person in black clothing and rubber gloves preparing a coffin adorned with a floral arrangement.

video

Values and beliefs

A funeral director takes in bodies that social stigma leaves unclaimed

11 minutes

Abstract art with subtle silhouettes of a person and white flowers, blending into a misty, ethereal background.

video

Ageing and death

How an end-of-life doula found her vocation as a companion for the dying

7 minutes

Three children looking curiously at an object covered with a translucent cloth in a dimly lit room.

essay

Death

Is grandad on the moon?

We no longer have a clear sense of how to introduce our children to death. But their questions can help us face up to it

Pragya Agarwal

Painting of a woman in a black-and-white gown gesturing to three men, with a person lying on a bed behind a curtain in the background.

essay

Meaning and the good life

Final thoughts

Do deathbed regrets give us a special insight into what really matters in life? There are good reasons to be sceptical

Neil Levy

A man in a white shirt with the text ‘Hey Kobe’ and Kanji script sits before a makeshift memorial of flowers, candles, and balloons.

video

Mood and emotion

Grieving Kobe Bryant, Conor wonders: why do untimely celebrity deaths hit so hard?

6 minutes

Painting of skeletons engaging with people in various scenes, set against a countryside background, featuring German text.

idea

Meaning and the good life

Sooner or later we all face death. Will a sense of meaning help us?

Warren Ward

Bronze statue of a bearded man raising his arm next to a horse’s head.

idea

Meaning and the good life

Marcus Aurelius helped me survive grief and rebuild my life

Jamie Lombardi

Aerial view of a cemetery with rows of headstones on grass, featuring a freshly dug grave in the middle right section.

essay

Death

This mortal coil

The fear of death drives many evils, from addiction to prejudice and war. Can it also be harnessed as a force for good?

Jeff Greenberg

Charcoal drawing of a melancholic woman holding a white handkerchief to her face, with dark shading surrounding the figure.

idea

Psychiatry and psychotherapy

It’s complicated – why some grief takes much longer to heal

Marie Lundorff

A painting depicting a funeral pyre with people gathered around in a desolate landscape, some weeping, others standing solemnly.

essay

Rituals and celebrations

Death by design

We can choose how we live – why not how we leave? A free society should allow dying to be more deliberate and imaginative

Daniel Callcut

A newborn baby cradled gently in an adult’s hands, highlighting the baby’s soft skin and the adult’s protective touch.

idea

Meaning and the good life

Thinking about one’s birth is as uncanny as thinking of death

Alison Stone

A person gently embracing a sheep, resting their head on the sheep’s head in a tender moment.

video

Animals and humans

‘When it comes to the end, we all want the same things.’ Why animals need a good death

15 minutes