Julian Barnes introduces Elizabeth Finch to literary scholar Jonathan Bate. Teacher and thinker, with careful empathy she guided her students to develop meaningful ideas and to discover their centres of seriousness. As a former student unpacks her notebooks and remembers her uniquely inquisitive mind, her passion for reason resonates through the years. Her ideas unlock the philosophies of the past, and explore key events that show us how to make sense of our lives today. The novel is a tribute to philosophy, an invitation to think for ourselves. It’s a moment to reflect and explore our theories and assumptions. Barnes’ novel The Sense of an Ending won the 2011 Man Booker Prize for Fiction.