QUESTIONS
A question every two weeks — or bring your own.
The editorial board publishes one question each cycle as a starting point, not a requirement. Write on it, or write on something else entirely and submit that instead. Past questions stay here along with the highest-scoring essay from each cycle.
Suggested for this cycle
Political Philosophy
Is moral progress real, or do we just repaint our prejudices?
Argue for or against the claim that shifts in moral consensus over centuries represent genuine progress, rather than the fashions of whoever holds power.
Writing on your own topic instead? Keep it within a similar word range and note your topic on the submission form — it's graded the same way, on its own merits.
Past questions
Science & Ethics
Should we edit the human germline once it's safe, not just once it's possible?
On the gap between technical readiness and moral permission in heritable gene editing.
Literature
Does a novel owe its reader a resolution?
On ambiguity, closure, and what fiction is for.
Economics
Is a four-day work week a real gain in freedom, or a rearrangement of the same cage?
On productivity, leisure, and what "free time" actually means under wage labor.
Political Theory
Can a democracy legitimately outvote a minority's core interests?
On majority rule, constitutional limits, and where the line actually sits.
How submissions are graded
Each essay is read blind — graders don't see the author's name — and scored across three criteria: the strength and originality of the central argument, the quality of evidence used to support it, and the clarity of the writing itself. Scores convert directly to leaderboard points.
See how points are ranked