Essay
Europe
Between the borders
The idea of European unity is more complicated than its supporters or critics allow
Animal minds
Animals think, therefore…
The inner lives of animals are hard to study. But there is evidence that they may be a lot richer than science once thought
Asia’s second-world-war ghosts
The unquiet past
Seven decades on from the defeat of Japan, memories of war still divide East Asia
Manhood
Men adrift
Badly educated men in rich countries have not adapted well to trade, technology or feminism
The future of the book
From papyrus to pixels
The digital transformation of the way books are written, published and sold has only just begun
China and the world
What China wants
As China becomes, again, the world’s largest economy, it wants the respect it enjoyed in centuries past. But it does not know how to achieve or deserve it
Financial crises
The slumps that shaped modern finance
Finance is not merely prone to crises, it is shaped by them. Five historical crises show how aspects of today’s financial system originated—and offer lessons for today’s regulators
Democracy
What’s gone wrong with democracy
Democracy was the most successful political idea of the 20th century. Why has it run into trouble, and what can be done to revive it?