Milton, Mill, and (Maybe) Aristotle on Why Hearing Horrible Speech Makes You a Better Person

How do you sell the idea of free speech to people who worry that words hurt? In the last few years, there have been increasing demands, most prominently on college campuses, to shut down hateful speech. A defense of free speech needs to explain why we should let people say vile things that no one should ever say to anyone. The familiar arguments for free speech aren’t responsive to these concerns.…