Aletheia (ἀλήθεια) is a Greek philosophical term meaning "truth" or "disclosure.”
In English, “aletheia” is generally pronounced “ah-lee-THAY-uh."
The Big Picture
Aletheia is, firstly, an experiment.
We want to pay our writers and reviewers for the research that they do. We want to peer-review “popular” philosophy. We want to provide academics with a forum where they can be creative and they don’t have to wait 6+ months for an initial decision. We want to give philosophy students a constructive place to improve their writing and share their thoughts while getting familiar with the peer-review process.
If this sounds intriguing, I will ask something of you: continue reading about us. It will only take five minutes of your time. And after you’re done, if Aletheia sounds like something you want to support, consider subscribing or getting involved. Because I can’t do this without you.
The Details
Founded in December 2024, Aletheia is a peer-reviewed philosophy publication and weekly newsletter with three distinctive columns.
The Symposium aims to make philosophy accessible and engaging for the general public. We believe some of the most impactful philosophy is done at the dinner table. So, grab a drink and join us at the Symposium as we ponder life’s biggest questions.
The Lyceum is an academic column. Here you will find journal quality work from professional philosophers. This column is double peer-reviewed and may seem esoteric to those outside of academia.
The Atheneum is a student-oriented column. Here, we offer students an opportunity to grow as writers and thinkers by providing a forum for them to test their ideas while receiving guidance and exposure to the peer-review process.
Our first newsletter is tentatively scheduled to be published on February 16, 2025, and then every Sunday after that date. Articles will be published on the website first, so you may see articles popping up beginning in January.
Want to write or review for us? You can find our submission guidelines here.
General questions can be directed to Jacob@Aleth.org.
What Makes Aletheia Unique?
Aletheia is the first-of-its-kind philosophy publication. At the center of this publication are two fundamental values: shared growth and mutual commitment.
Academic publishing is a $19 billion-dollar-a-year industry. There is no good reason that writers and reviewers should not be paid for their time.
As Aletheia grows, we will share that growth with the people who make the publication possible. Author pay per article will be directly related to the number of paid subscribers that we have.
However, as a new publication founded in December 2024, we can’t pay writers and reviewers just yet.
We can begin paying writers and reviewers when we’ve reached 1,000 paid subscribers. Once we hit that milestone, we will begin paying $50 per article and $25 per review.
I know, I know. That doesn’t seem like much. But because we are committed to shared growth, each milestone will result in increased pay for our contributors.
For example, if we were to reach 10,000 paid subscribers, we would be able to pay our contributors up to $500 per article and $150 per review.
Is 10,000 paid subscribers a reachable goal? I don’t know. Our success largely depends on the quality of work we publish. Which is to say—our success depends on the success of our contributors.
We need your help to bring this idea to life!
If you’re a reader interested in philosophy:
Please consider subscribing.
If you’re a an academic, student, or independent philosopher:
Please consider writing or reviewing for us.
You can find submission guidelines here.
About Jacob, the founder.
My name is Jacob Bell. I have a BA and an MRes in Philosophy, and I have been writing and editing for various publications for more than a decade. I wrote my MRes thesis on the structures of meaningful experience at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David.
Why I am building Aletheia
Aletheia was created to combat some academic practices that, to me, seem damaging to philosophy and philosophers.
I believe that:
Writers and reviewers deserve to get paid for their work.
Length constraints and an overemphasis on citations and preludes are a burden to philosophical thought and creativity. Gettier’s 3 page paper on JTB wouldn’t be publishable today, for example.
It shouldn’t take 6+ months to receive an initial decision to a submitted a manuscript.
Students and new philosophy writers deserve a constructive forum to test ideas, showcase work, and engage in the peer-review process.
If you have questions, comments, or if you want to get involved with this project, you can email me at Jacob@Aleth.org.
If you want to write or review for us, head over to our submission guidelines page.
Oh, and please help us spread the word by sharing us with your friends, family, and colleagues.
