"The world is open. It is we who close it with our senses, our thought and language. We call that closure 'reality'."
News and Events
Lost in Thought
Steven Pinker and Hilary Lawson debate the structure of thought, language, and reality.Should we see language as independent of thought and if so what does thought consist of? Or is the opposition of thought and language itself a mistake?
Moral Maze: What Is Truth?
Hilary Lawson joins the BBC's Moral Maze to interrogate the perennial question, 'What Is Truth?'. Aired 24 December 2025, on BBC Radio 4.
Interview with Hilary Lawson: Closure
Closer to Truth's host Robert Lawrence Kuhn interviews Hilary Lawson on his book, 'Closure: A Story of Everything'.
Media
Beyond the Reality Illusion
Watch Hilary Lawson's May 2025 lecture on why it is a mistake to believe that science uncovers reality, which captured a Youtube audience of 6m.
Beyond Truth and Reality
Most think they have a good grip on what is true and what is real. But we can't all be right. Philosophers Hilary Lawson and Slavoj Žižek debate the nature of truth, reality, and the illusions that continue to hold the modern mind captive.
The "Closure Machine": How Humans Really See the World
Big Think's Jonny Thomson interviews Hilary Lawson on his philosophy of 'closure', and why a tree is also a swing, Aug 2025.
Posted May '25
Posted Jan '26
Posted Aug '25
Books
Themes
