Tolleranze a confronto. Visioni contemporanee e la «Contro Midia» di Demostene

One of the key issues revolving around the value of toleration is that of its limits, i.e. that of the boundaries beyond which the reasons to practise it lose their ground of accountability. In this paper I will try to restate an ancient paradigm of toleration and its limits by teasing out the principles that inform the acceptance of morally reproachable attitudes. By focusing on Demosthenes’ oration Against Meidias, I shall argue that the “public reason” to which the author resorts throughout his discussion is a substantive one, grounded in the values of honour and in the avoidance of hybris. I will also suggest that the limit of toleration is reached when the whole political community, the laws and the gods are damaged by acts of insolence. Finally, I will contend that, besides their differences, ancient and contemporary approaches to toleration betray a shared endorsement of the idea of “respectability”.