Humanities

Shahidha Bari follows the historical trail to see how the author of Pride and Prejudice became the celebrity figure we know today

Stephen Mumford tells Matthew Reisz about his desire to bring his discipline to a wider audience, why Norway was the perfect place to write his Cartesian debut novel and why insights into causation have more practical relevance than might first appear

A. W. Purdue chews over a grim account of how civilised nature crumbles when starvation looms

Sharon Wheeler delights in casting a made-for-TV 17th-century tale laced with sex and the dark arts

Academics can acquire cult-like followings, but our goal should not be self-aggrandisement but the advancement of others, says Shahidha Bari

Catherine Clinton admires an intimate portrayal of US presidents’ wives and those they subjugated

The fashionable idea that reading novels could improve students’ fellow feeling bears little scrutiny, says Seán Williams

Book of the week: The art of coaxing meaning from literature is the legacy of one great critic, says Robert Eaglestone

Number of bachelor's degrees awarded in field down 5 per cent year-on-year

Report urges academy to ‘embrace’ opportunities for wider research dissemination

A brilliant study examines the wide variety of markets for trafficked human beings, writes Jonathan Mirsky

Willy Maley revisits Milton’s epic poem with a brilliant study that fully engages the senses

Bogie, Billie and Brando had it, but ‘it’ is a quality in constant flux, says Robert Eaglestone

Book of the Week: Danny Dorling on an illuminating analysis of the many factors that swayed the referendum

Support for medical science and the humanities will increase under 2017 budget deal

Shane O’Mara on a profound and humorous exploration of human consciousness

Barbara Graziosi on a lively account of the opposition between an authoritarian state and a mercantile democracy

William Kolbrener on an extraordinary collection that explores literature’s role in shaping ethical thought and helping to ‘transform the psyche’

Book of the week: The rise in London’s trading fortunes owed much to foreign visitors, finds Lucy Wooding

June Purvis on the female pioneers on the frontline in the war to end all wars

East Asia’s most iconic garment is as dynamic as any Western mode of dress, finds Joy Hendry

John Shand appreciates a study of how humans cope when life throws them a curve ball

Book of the week: Fred Inglis yearns for post-1964 insights from the life of an icon of the intellectual Left

E. Stina Lyon on the contradictory feelings of insecurity and optimism that  digital cultures provides mothers

Constantine Sandis on a fitting swansong from one of its greatest moral philosophers

Without input from other disciplines, new technologies will fail to improve lives, report warns

The eminent philosopher talks of academics’ vanity, the place of philosophy in a ‘post-truth’ world and her reservations about the TEF

Book of the week: the digital deluge can harm our social health; Emma Rees commends a prescription to tackle it

The suicide of a student on campus made Steven A. Miller realise that his students didn’t need a philosophy class to remind them of their impending deaths 

Prostitutes need the help of economists to argue for the rights and protections that other workers take for granted, says Victoria Bateman

A whistle-stop tour of criminals’ texts is packed with listicles and promises, says Sharon Wheeler

Women have long been commentators on global affairs but their messages aren’t necessarily getting through, writes Elizabeth Cobbs

Steven Rose enjoys a philosopher’s deep dive with some uniquely intelligent company

Setting pre-seen exams can bring out previously unsuspected abilities among students, say Nicholas Morton and Natasha Hodgson

A wide-ranging study is triumphant in plumbing the depths of socialist despair, says Fred Inglis

Is a study of addiction everything that we need it to be in a post-truth, alternative facts era? asks Tara Brabazon

Military might and border walls are of more importance than compassion in Trump’s America, says John Fea

Health and environmental agencies face savage reductions as defence spending soars

The voices of 10 defectors are the most powerful parts of a study of the Hermit Kingdom, says Hazel Smith

Ursula King searches for communion between faithless and faithful in a study of unbelievers

Book of the week: Danny Dorling lauds an exposition of the benefits of obligation-free income and how to attain them

Paul Bernal on whether we can simply dismiss privacy concerns in order to embrace the world of big data

Book of the week: Americans have to reach out to fight the political division fed by social media, says Angelia Wilson

Robert A. Segal on a exploration of the interior life of the leader who led the Jews out of the desert

History would suggest that only violent means lead to less inequality, says Victoria Bateman

The life of Il Duce’s inamorata sheds light on Italian politics and society, writes Neil Gregor

Putting a bottom line value on language skills is a laudable aim, but the benefits and challenges of linguistic diversity merit more exploration, says Ingrid Piller

Constantine Sandis considers a cool look at how our biases may render altruistic acts less effective

Book of the week: A history of famous liberals shows how global conflict shaped them and us, writes A. W. Purdue

Research finds that working overseas can boost PhD holders’ salaries 

Traditional defences of the discipline are based on unsound reasoning, writes James Nikopoulos

Beware the beginning is one lesson to take from a vital and timely study, says Robert Eaglestone

We flock to pop-ups and the beach in Paris but anxiety is never far behind, says Richard Williams

Thousands of details from forgotten lives of domesticity enrich this first-rate history, writes Deborah D. Rogers

Images of two beasts carried ideas about science and communication, says Simon Underdown

Laura Frost wonders if an ambitious author’s tales of erotic adventure were sexed up by others

Olivette Otele on a timely reappraisal of the decision by some French territories to remain in the republic

Polyamory could shed light on whether love is mainly biological or social, says Jane O’Grady

Neil Gregor on the various types of orchestral life under the Nazis

The new CEO of UKRI, Sir Mark Walport, says a shake-up of UK research funding is needed if the country is to remain internationally competitive