The First Freedom: A History of Free Speech

by Robert Hargreaves

While the philosophical and legal definitions of free speech may be familiar, its history has hitherto been neglected. Robert Hargreaves leads us through this evolving story, showing where the idea of free speech came from, and who its heroes are. Opening with a wide-ranging survey of its classical and medieval precursors and moving on to discuss its emergence in the eighteenth century as an independent principle to be argued over and fought for, Hargreaves sheds new light on the lives and motivation of those who championed free speech. From the execution of Socrates to the writings of Milton, Voltaire and Mill to the down-to-earth struggles of men like Paine, Wilkes and Cobbett, the author tackles the subject with a journalist's eye for telling details and human drama. The stories of setbacks and progress, of cataclysmic defeats and long centuries of stagnation, show that the battle for free speech is never over.

320 pages, Hardcover

First published January 25, 2003

Reviews

[Nick Pochedly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Given the times in which we live, this book may serve as a sweeping elegy for our hard won civil liberties. An amazingly detailed look into the emergence and defense of free speech. Focusing on particular periods and personages, we see how the crude idea of protecting the liberty to share unpopular ideas blossomed into protections for everyone to share their own opinion. Although, the book may give whiplash with sudden time jumps or introductions of new actors. The impartial eyes of the author gazes at a parade of zealots, scientists, philosophers, politicians, and rabble rousers who appear throughout time-- a feat of neutrality that a lesser author could not accomplish. The book places trust in the audience to weigh many historical facts, even dark truths about those they might support. In a free society, it is ultimately the onus of the public to decide what is true and important from the information before them.