Free speech is limited by the time and one’s formed character, not just law

Evidence

The limits to free speech aren’t merely those imposed by law and convention—that is, by an external power. They are also intrinsic to the time and space it takes to build and demonstrate a particular argument, to understand a particular experience—and more broadly, to become particular speaking and listening subjects. The investment people have in particular arguments is not simply a matter of abstract, timeless logic. It relates to the kind of person one has become, and wants to continue to be. In other words, there is no public sphere of free speech at an instant. — Talal Asad, Formations of the Secular, 898 (#expands, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Free speech limits are intrinsic to subject formation, not just external constraints — Talal Asad, Formations of the Secular:…, 898; Free speech is always constrained by legal limits and secrecy practices — Talal Asad, Formations of the Secular:…, 898; Everyday speech conceals society’s domination over language as hidden meaning — Herbert Marcuse, One-Dimensional Man: Studies in the…, 669

Broader Connections

• Free speech limits are intrinsic to subject formation, not just external constraints #expands (0.95) — Talal Asad, Formations of the Secular, 898