And below are some historical books and novels that have been banned throughout the ages. Check out the list here.
- The Odyssey by Homer: Possibly the oldest banning on our list, this ancient Greek epic poem was banned in the year 35 because of its “Greek ideals of freedom,” which Caligula did not approve of.
- The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer) by Mark Twain: First banned in 1884, “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” is one of America’s most frequently challenged books, largely because of its use of racial slurs and its depictions of race.
- The Well of Loneliness by Radclyffe Hall: This semi-autobiographical novel, one of the first to feature overtly lesbian characters, was first published in 1928 and was banned for obscenity.
- The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer (also here in Middle English): While its sexual innuendos are often the delight of high-schoolers, they’ve also been the grounds for controversy and banning since its 14th-century publication.
- The Decameron of Giovanni Boccaccio by Giovanni Boccaccio: A little like The Canterbury Tales’ frame story about a pilgrimage, this 14th-century book is made up of the stories told by a group of people who have fled the Black Death. It was outlawed, among other things, under the British Obscene Publications Act.
- Candide by Voltaire: This 18th-century French satire lampoons just about everything and was banned by the Great Council of Geneva shortly after it was first published.
- Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe: Originally published in 1852, Stowe’s novel and its depictions of slavery fueled the U.S. abolitionist movement. Consequently, it wasbanned in states that were in favor of slavery, and it continues to be challenged for its racial depictions today.
- The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Famous Moll Flanders by Daniel Defoe: Published in 1722, Moll’s story fell afoul of the Comstock Act for, among other things, depicting a woman who worked as a prostitute and married her half-brother.
- Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift: Another 18th-century work, Swift’s satirical travelogue was banned for “obscenity and wickedness.”
- Lysistrata by Aristophanes: The basic plot of Aristophanes’ play, circa 411 BCE, focuses on women’s attempt to stop the Peloponnesian War by denying their husbands sex. It’s another that was banned in the U.S. under the Comstock Law of 1873.
- The Awakening by Kate Chopin: This 1899 book tells the story of a woman’s struggle against restrictive social systems, and it was immediately banned for decades.
- Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert: Much like Chopin’s protagonist, Emma Bovary turns to extramarital affairs to escape a boring, seemingly meaningless life. It was banned for “offences against public morals” in 1857, and Flaubert was prosecuted.
- The Rights of Man by Thomas Paine: Before emigrating to the United States, Paine was indicted for treason in England in 1792 because this book supported the French and American Revolutions. (His other works drew fire as well, on both sides of the pond.)
- The Confessions of Jean Jacques Rousseau: Written in 1770 and 1771, Rousseau’s autobiography was banned by U.S. Customs in 1929.
- Moby Dick; Or, The Whale by Herman Melville: A Texas schoolbanned this 1851 novel in 1996 for “conflict[ing] with their community values.”