The Musical Blockbuster That Didn’t Play By the Rules
Wicked makes the case that audiences aren’t so tired of the genre after all.
Thanksgiving Should Be in October
A modest proposal for fixing the back-to-back-holiday crunch
The Road Dogs of the American West
Survivalists, drifters, and divorcées across a resurgent wilderness
The Atlantic Gift Guide
The Atlantic has chosen 65 gifts for bringing more merriment, adventure, and wonder to the ones you love.
My Home Is a Horror of Unfinished Tasks
Why can’t I get anything done?
Taylor Swift Is a Perfect Example of How Publishing Is Changing
Swift is a symptom, not a cause, of the weakening bonds between celebrities and publishing houses.
How America Got Mean
In a culture devoid of moral education, generations are growing up in a morally inarticulate, self-referential world.
Three Ways to Become a Deeper Thinker
You don’t have to become a Buddhist monk to realize the value of contemplating hard questions without clear answers.
The Right Has a Bluesky Problem
The X exodus is weakening a way for conservatives to speak to the masses.
Moderation Is Not the Same Thing as Surrender
Democrats do not, in fact, face a choice between championing trans rights and completely abandoning them.
Three Ways to Handle an Awkward Thanksgiving
Even if you’re sitting down with a boorish uncle or a snippy cousin, you can do things to make the occasion a happy one.
Seventy Miles in Hell
The Darién Gap was once considered impassable. Now hundreds of thousands of migrants are risking treacherous terrain, violence, hunger, and disease to travel through the jungle to the United States.
The Type of Love That Makes People Happiest
When it comes to lasting romance, passion has nothing on friendship.
Dear Therapist: I Was the Other Woman
I know I sound naive, but this wasn’t like a “normal” affair.
The AI War Was Never Just About AI
Tech giants such as Google and Meta need something more than compelling chatbots to win.
A Horror Movie About an Atheist Who Won’t Shut Up
The hollowness at the center of Heretic
The Sociopaths Among Us—And How to Avoid Them
You’re bound to come across the “Dark Triad” type of malignant narcissists in life—and they can be superficially appealing. Better to look for their exact opposite.
Throw Out Your Black Plastic Spatula
It’s probably leaching chemicals into your cooking oil.
The Democrats’ Billionaire Mistake
In a populist moment, the Democratic Party had the extremely rich and the very famous, some great music, and Mark Ruffalo. And they got shellacked.
Is Ambivalence Killing Parenthood?
And can deciding to have kids even be a rational exercise in the first place?