Abigail is a Debating Matters alumnus and intends to follow a career in journalism.

The most mysterious organ

More fundamentally, however much we know, or will come to know, about this most strange and miraculous of organs, will we ever truly be able to understand it? And so we enter the realm of philosophy. How can I begin to understand how the world looks to someone whose neurological function is so different from my own? How would we know we were not speaking at cross-purposes or misinterpreting each other?

Looking East, seeing West - The White Tiger, Man Booker Prize winner 2008

As I followed Adiga’s protagonist Balram Halwai – humble dedicated servant turned gutless entrepreneur – I couldn’t help but think that he might be symbolic of Indian development more generally. As he moves up the ranks and acquires more and more money, the change in him becomes very interesting.

Devilish history

In a time when we are constantly trying to extend our lives, it is fascinating to hear the story of someone who so desperately wants to die; as his documenters say, ‘He is a case study in the mechanisms of suicide, he symbolises the wretchedest of the wretched: those who want to die but cannot’.

A forward motion

Two campaigners reflect on two days spent arguing for the motion to abolish No Platform at Sussex University.

Identifying fragments

Using the protagonist as a uniquely-minded spy into the world of mundane middle-class existence, Faulks is able to give the reader a fresh insight into the issues that we all know so well.