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Enforcing Civility and Respect: Three Societies
James Q. Whitman
Politicians and academics have recently been preaching more
"civility," not only in everyday life, but also in such areas as
sexual harassment and hate speech. But can the law really enforce
"civility"? This Article examines the law of civility in Germany,
France, and the United States. Germany and France do have
far-reaching civility regulation, most notably in the form of the
law of "insult," a species of law essentially unknown in the United
States. The tradition of the law of insult serves as the basis for
hate-speech regulation in both Germany and France; in different
ways, that tradition contributes to the regulation of everyday
behavior in both countries. This Article argues that the French and
German laws of insult, which revolve around the idea that there is
a protectable interest in personal "honor," are largely descended
from the old law of dueling. An old concept of aristocratic "honor"
lies at the heart of insult law in Continental Europe today;
indeed, hate-speech regulation, and perhaps also developing
European sexual harassment law, are shaped by a generalization of
ultimately aristocratic norms to the entire population.
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