A Fundamental Rethinking of Freedom of Speech†

Paul Wragg’s book, Free Speech Theory: A Radical Restatement, is arguably the most important work on free speech theory since Frederick Schauer’s now-classic Free Speech: A Philosophical Enquiry. The theoretical issues of freedom of speech have hitherto been dominated in the international arena by the US literature, which builds on the First Amendment jurisprudence as its starting point. Now, an essential European work digs deep into the question and, moving away from legal positivism, seeks an answer to the question: ‘What is free speech?’ Wragg gives a new, revelatory interpretation of John Stuart Mill’s oft-quoted essay, ‘On Liberty’. The author argues forcefully in defence of ‘irrationality’, which is the keyword of the book. For him, the very essence of free speech is the protection of irrational speech, that is, speech regarded as worthless by traditional free speech justifications. This is not to unleash foolishness and irresponsibility, but to protect the freedom and autonomy of the individual. Wragg follows the greatest liberal English traditions, as his ideal is the individual responsible for themself.