Fidel Castro died in Cuba in 2016. With his departure, the dream of communism as a political reality sank below the verge. China is ruled by a ‘communist’ dictatorship but in reality runs a form of state sponsored turbo-capitalism. Russia has reverted to type with a strong man Czar despotism, the Duma being a toothless […]
Karl Marx by Gareth Stedman Jones Read More »
Much as life in Lanark and dear old Blighty is unsatisfactory we do not fear being snatched away to a detention centre and tortured because the government does not share our opinions. There are, of course, plenty of regimes in this world where that is the case. In 1990, Jaballa Matar, an exiled Lybian dissident
The Return by Hisham Matar Read More »
If it’s possible to be luminous and dark at the same time then Thomas de Quincey (1785-1859) fits the bill. He always stood aside from the curriculum approved parade of literary greats whom it was our duty to read and revere at school. The A-Level Summer reading list of 150 titles nowhere featured Confessions of
Guilty Thing by Frances Wilson Read More »
There are some people who can’t stand being alone. You might know one. Their self esteem so depends on the constant affirmation of others that 24 hours spent in their own company is too upsetting. They constantly busy themselves with social life, joining activities, running committees, catering for pets, having babies – anything to avoid
The Lonely City by Olivia Laing Read More »
You may enjoy this compelling hybrid of memoir, narrative and philosophy. Previously the author of academic works (Thinking Through the Imagination: Aesthetics in Human Cognition, 2014, and others), John Kaag (http://scholar.harvard.edu/jkaag/biocv) here teaches philosophy through narrative. It concerns the discovery of 10,000 books in a neglected building on the rural New Hampshire estate of William
American Philosophy by John Kaag Read More »
In 2016 the political Left in Britain is in disarray. Large numbers of people on the Left and in The Labour Party believe that it is impossible Jeremy Corbyn could be elected as British Prime Minister. Yet the Labour Party has resoundingly re-elected Corbyn as leader. Aside from the convictions of activists, it would be
George Orwell by Robert Colls Read More »
For most of us who are not sadists, it is hard to understand how a human being can get pleasure from the acute suffering of another sentient creature. Worryingly, the personality trait has emerged throughout recorded history and exists in the present day. As you read this thousands of humans and other animals are being tortured.
Infamous Lady by Kimberly L. Craft Read More »
Artists, writers and musicians have often spoken about being inspired by a ‘muse’. Sometimes this is another human being who brings out something special in their creativity. Sometimes it feels like an invisible force which takes over them and creates through them. In Greek mythology, The Muses were goddesses of poetry, song, music and dance: what
The Naked Muse by Kelley Swain Read More »
Robert Trivers (http://roberttrivers.com/Welcome.html, and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Trivers) is one of the world’s leading evolutionary biologists. In an extraordinary burst of creativity in the 1970s, Trivers established the basis for our current understanding of how evolution shapes an array of behaviours; his work from this decade alone comprises much of the backbone of today’s evolutionary psychology. Thus, even
Wild Life by Robert Trivers Read More »
