Ingram Edits New Book ‘Freedom of Speech, 1500–1850’

Robert G. Ingram

Dr. Robert G. Ingram, professor of History at Ohio University, co-edited a new book titled Freedom of speech, 1500–1850 (Manchester University Press).

Ingram co-authors the first chapter of the book, “Freedom of speech in England and the anglophone world, 1500–1850,” as well as chapter 8, “‘The warr. against heaven by blasphemors and infidels’: prosecuting heresy in Enlightenment England.”

“This collection brings together historians, political theorists and literary scholars to provide historical perspectives on the modern debate over freedom of speech, particularly the question of whether limitations might be necessary given religious pluralism and concerns about hate speech. It integrates religion into the history of free speech and rethinks what is sometimes regarded as a coherent tradition of more or less absolutist justifications for free expression,” according to the book’s description.

“Contributors examine the aims and effectiveness of government policies, the sometimes contingent ways in which freedom of speech became a reality and a wide range of canonical and non-canonical texts in which contemporaries outlined their ideas and ideals. Overall, the book argues that while the period from 1500 to 1850 witnessed considerable change in terms of both ideas and practices, these were more or less distinct from those that characterise modern debates.”