Culture

Our curated articles offering new takes on the big themes and questions in our culture. Plus reviews of books, film, media and experiences. Culture is one of four key themes covered by Seen & Unseen.

Review
  1. America
  2. Books
Riot police stand guard outside a White House fence line.

James Davison Hunter: diagnosing America’s health

Roger Standing
A great experiment is depleted, and nihilism slips into the void.
8min read
Article
  1. Culture
  2. Mental Health
A woman stand at a mixing desk playing a small keyboard.

Dark, sweet and subtle: recovered music orientates us

Jonathan Evens
The alt-folk music seeking inspiration from forgotten hymns.
5min read
Review
  1. Books
  2. Culture
A book cover depicts a yellow and white chessboard with pieces casting shadows of people.

My open letter to Sally Rooney: dilatasti cor meum

James K.A. Smith
You enlarge my heart.
6min read
Article
  1. Culture
  2. Film & TV
A regency woman dabs her mouth with a bloody hankerchief.

Zombies: a philosopher's guide to the purpose-driven undead

Ryan Stark
Don’t dismiss zombiecore as lowbrow.
5min read
Review
  1. Books
  2. Comedy
On a TV chat show, guests look to one of their own talking to the audience.

Miranda Hart's diagnosis of the unseen

Belle Tindall
Beyond a medical illness she's on to something supernatural.
5min read
Podcast
  1. Culture
  2. Film & TV
In profile a woman speaks into a microphone and holds her hands up from a desk.

Talia Dean: re-enchanting X Factor madness

Nick Jones
Talia talks about dealing with the celebrity world.
1min read
Review
  1. Community
  2. Culture
A couple together on a sofa watch a laptop,

Nobody Wants This: the rom-com for tense times

Lauren Westwood
Warning: contains warm depictions of strong community and belief.
5min read
Review
  1. Attention
  2. Culture
Two TV characters, a man and a woman, stand in front of a crossword cover walls of a room.

Ludwig’s clues to the answers we long for

Jack Chisnall
Puzzles preserve a fully realised truth in the clue, and, if we are willing to persevere, we will be rewarded.
5min read
Article
  1. Culture
  2. Music
A close-up of the black label of a blue vinyl record

Jack White’s breaking the biggest rule in rock 'n' roll

Belle Tindall
What if the greatest cultural moments were the ones barely anyone saw?
5min read
Explainer
  1. Books
  2. Culture
A modern vampire stairs at the face of his girlfried.

Bled dry: some red flags for those who hope to date a vampire

Ryan Stark
A philosopher's guide to undying love.
6min read
Article
  1. Culture
  2. Film & TV
A cartoon chase sees a car driven by a cow escaping from a car of baddies under a giant poster of their villainous boss.

Cartoon villains: who's the real baddie?

James Cary
What kind of villain do we want?
5min read
Review
  1. Awe and wonder
  2. Books
At dusk, three people sit on a field edge and look at the stars emerging.

Charles Taylor on how poetry seeks cosmic connections

Paul Weston
The philosopher yields an array of luminous insights.
6min read