Ideas

Feminist authors

Golden girls

A generation of feminist writers is approaching old age. But the same debates, about beauty, wealth and power, rage on, writes Sally Feldman

Plug In City

Building the future

The visionaries of the post-war era aimed to revolutionise urban living. Is it time we rediscovered their utopian spirit? asks Douglas Murphy

Adam Curtis images

Fail better

The films of Adam Curtis tell the histories of utopian ideas gone disastrously wrong. So why does he think we need more of them? Daniel Trilling meets the acclaimed documentary…

Martin Rowson Epicurus illustration

In defence of hedonism

Epicurus was far from the lover of fine food his name now suggests. In fact, his ideas liberated his followers from fear of the gods, writes David Sedley

Illustration by Sergio Membrillas

In pursuit of happiness

A policy revolution is under way to improve our well-being. Are its motives genuine? Niki Seth-Smith reports

What on earth is mindfulness?

What on earth is mindfulness?

Cheap and easy to deliver, a new mental health treatment is all the rage. But should we be asking tougher questions about its effectiveness?

Stay in touch with New Humanist