Is Civility a Sham? Speech and the Limits of Tolerance

A lecture and Q & A with Teresa Bejan, University of Oxford

Politicians and intellectuals today warn that we face a crisis of civility, with partisan hatreds and wars of words polluting our public sphere. In liberal democracies committed to tolerating diversity as well as active, often heated disagreement, the loss of this conversational virtue appears critical. But is civility really a virtue? Or is it, as critics claim, a covert demand for conformity that silences dissent?

Bringing the insights of early modern political thought to bear on this contemporary problem, Dr. Bejan’s lecture will explore a path forward, one that challenges assumptions about what a tolerant and civil society should look like today.

TERESA BEJAN is Associate Professor of Political Theory and Fellow of Oriel College at the University of Oxford. Her first book, Mere Civility: Disagreement and the Limits of Toleration (Harvard University Press, 2017) was called “penetrating and sophisticated” by the New York Times, and her work has been featured on PBS, WNYC, CBC radio, Philosophy Bites and other podcasts. In addition to her many articles in academic journals and edited volumes, she has written on free speech and civility for The Atlantic and The Washington Post. Dr. Bejan received her PhD with distinction from Yale in 2013.

Sponsored by the Department of Political Science and the Alexander Hamilton Forum.