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Philosophy, Writing and Wayward Curiosities from Will Buckingham

The Philosophy of Giving

The Philosophy of Giving

Christmas is on the way, and you are facing your biggest philosophical challenge of the year: what gift do you get for a man like Uncle Pedro?

Chrysippus on How to Manage Our Emotions

Chrysippus on How to Manage Our Emotions

The philosopher Chrysippus believed that emotions are not things that happen to us, but things that we do. This means that we can bring emotion under the control of reason.

Ritual Shapes the World

Ritual Shapes the World

According to both philosophers of Ancient China and those of the Ancient Maya world, ritual has a powerful role to play in shaping ourselves - and the world.

It's a Kind of Magic: The Philosophy of Ritual

It's a Kind of Magic: The Philosophy of Ritual

Getting philosophical about ritual, from Confucius and spirit sacrifice in Ancient China to the everyday miracle of shaking hands.

Pyrrho and the Trouble with Ethics

Pyrrho and the Trouble with Ethics

Pyrrho was the precursor of the ancient sceptical school. He was a philosopher who travelled widely and, according to some commentators, reinvented Indian modes of thought in the context of ancient Greece.

Hipparchia: Philosophy as Comedy

Hipparchia: Philosophy as Comedy

The Cynic philosopher Hipparchia defied social convention, in pursuit of a life free of hypocrisy and privilege.

Not the Mystical East: India's Long Tradition of Materialism

Not the Mystical East: India's Long Tradition of Materialism

We often assume that Indian philosophy is somehow inherently “spiritual”. But India's long tradition of Cārvāka materialist philosophy suggests otherwise.

Sophie Grace Chappell on Plato and the Moral Imagination

Sophie Grace Chappell on Plato and the Moral Imagination

An interview with Sophie Grace Chappell about philosophy, following your deepest impulses, and why mountain climbing is not unlike philosophy.

Aristotle on Flourishing

Aristotle on Flourishing

Aristotle argued that the end or purpose of human life was flourishing. But what is flourishing? And how do we flourish?

Aristotle on Ways of Knowing

Aristotle on Ways of Knowing

Aristotle was a hugely eclectic thinker. But he was also a systematic one. And at the heart of his philosophy is the idea of the diversity of human ways of knowing.

Hello, Stranger to be BBC Radio4 Book of the Week

Hello, Stranger to be BBC Radio4 Book of the Week

Tune in to find out about Hello, Stranger

Hui Shi and the Power of Analogy

Hui Shi and the Power of Analogy

The Chinese philosopher Hui Shi (370-310 BCE) was famed for his logical puzzles, and his skill in debate.