Feminism is a useful lens through which to view the law because it reveals unspoken assumptions where the disputes seem almost ideological and no longer legal. Professor Susan Williams takes a dispassionate view of the speech debates and shows that they tend to advance one of two views: free speech leads to the truth; free speech allows citizens to be fully autonomous. Both views are important but not easily reconciled. There is a way out that grounds speech rights in a "shared reality."

Uli Baer teaches literature and photography as University Professor at New York University. A recipient of Guggenheim, Getty and Humboldt awards, in addition to hosting "Speaking of…” he hosts (with Caroline Weber) the podcast "The Proust Questionnaire” and is Editorial Director at Warbler Press. Email [email protected]; Twitter @UliBaer.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices