Critique
The Skeleton of History
Abandoning narrative form in history writing leads to laziness, the omission of important facts, and a flimsier understanding of cause and effect. Why doesn’t the OUP know that?
Ayn Rand: Prophet of Capitalism
Why Atlas Shrugged, the libertarian’s bible, is back in the bestseller lists
Morality and Public Space
The Western democratic state depends on a public space that is free, peaceful, and equally accessible to every citizen. How far can we go in shaping the space to meet the demands of ‘public morality’, before we upset this delicate balance?
Bad Beyond Imagination
Bernhard Schlink’s novel, The Reader, is both artistically and morally fraudulent. The oscar-winning film that sprung from it is no better
I Think, Therefore I Am – An Individual
How the modern ideal of individuality can leave us adrift in a value-free world
Classic Teller of Painful Truths
The Polish poet Zbigniew Herbert, whose collected work is now available in English for the first time, crystallised the ravages of invasion and communist rule in his quest to tell the truth about pain
Language, Truth and Logos
The analytic philosopher Elizabeth Anscombe was able to reconcile her field with her faith, without “compartmentalising”, or compromising either
Healey’s Bully Pulpit is Worth Revisiting
The memoirs of one of our most able and most cultivated politicians provide a useful reminder of the virtues of ordinary politics
Lords and Ladies of Byzantium
Ancient Greek culture, Roman law and Eastern Christianity all contributed to the longevity of the Byzantine Empire
Writers, Visible and Invisible
Writers are hidden beings, says the winner of the 2008 PEN/Nabokov Lifetime Achievement Award
Tolerating the intolerant
“For those who thought that a global pandemic would sound the death knell for identity politics, think again”
How to prevent the next pandemic
‘I have been reporting as a science journalist for years that the world is at increasing risk of pandemics like this; that this was predicted; that we know what we need to do to prepare and we simply haven’t done it; and that more and worse pandemics are coming so we need to do that, now’
D’où parles-tu? The post-truth world
Power, illusion and the open society: how postmodernism undermines our foundational concepts