Areopagitica (Version 2)

"Areopagitica (Version 2)" is a famous essay written by John Milton, which defends the freedom of the press. Milton believed that the best way to combat falsehood was to allow it to be expressed and then defeated by the power of truth. In this essay, he argues against book censorship and advocates for the free expression of ideas. Despite serving as a censor himself, Milton never lost his conviction that censorship was not the way to battle falsehood. This essay is considered to be the most extensive defense of freedom of the press in English and is written in the form of a five-part Classical oration.