,

Whether they've been banned or not, the ideas in these books have somehow or other been considered dangerous by somebody or other. This is not a "Best Of" list, this is just a list of books that somehow or another, contain dangerous ideas. This list may surprise you, the ideas contained in these books might not even seem dangerous now, but others are just as controversial then as they were today.
1

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3

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4.01 avg rating — 4,483,726 ratings
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3.80 avg rating — 3,861,971 ratings
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5

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4.01 avg rating — 121,476 ratings
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6

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4.45 avg rating — 314,590 ratings
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7

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3.97 avg rating — 2,796,180 ratings
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8

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4.16 avg rating — 27,609 ratings
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9

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3.17 avg rating — 43,520 ratings
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10

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3.99 avg rating — 882,830 ratings
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11

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4.03 avg rating — 1,373,077 ratings
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12

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4.03 avg rating — 1,609,853 ratings
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13

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3.70 avg rating — 71,407 ratings
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14

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3.93 avg rating — 2,508,502 ratings
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15

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4.29 avg rating — 53,252 ratings
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16

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3.88 avg rating — 425,291 ratings
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17

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4.35 avg rating — 1,499,380 ratings
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18

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4.06 avg rating — 376,269 ratings
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19

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4.24 avg rating — 24,052 ratings
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20

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3.69 avg rating — 405,812 ratings
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21

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4.35 avg rating — 9,792,376 ratings
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22

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3.92 avg rating — 325,784 ratings
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23

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4.13 avg rating — 118,728 ratings
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24

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4.36 avg rating — 474,587 ratings
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25

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4.09 avg rating — 264,076 ratings
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26

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4.42 avg rating — 112 ratings
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26

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4.31 avg rating — 191 ratings
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28

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4.27 avg rating — 48 ratings
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29

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3.60 avg rating — 3,487 ratings
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30

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4.36 avg rating — 157,206 ratings
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31

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3.87 avg rating — 38,279 ratings
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32

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3.78 avg rating — 153,986 ratings
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33

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3.88 avg rating — 1,007,283 ratings
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34

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4.01 avg rating — 296,666 ratings
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35

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4.67 avg rating — 6 ratings
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36

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3.66 avg rating — 33,393 ratings
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37

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3.92 avg rating — 11,189 ratings
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38

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really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 65 ratings
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39

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really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 65 ratings
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40

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4.32 avg rating — 406,504 ratings
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40

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4.17 avg rating — 247,955 ratings
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42

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4.35 avg rating — 4,107,047 ratings
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43

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3.73 avg rating — 7,313 ratings
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44

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3.84 avg rating — 356 ratings
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45

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3.84 avg rating — 4,409 ratings
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46

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4.09 avg rating — 31,245 ratings
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47

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4.30 avg rating — 172 ratings
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48

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3.75 avg rating — 16 ratings
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49

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4.19 avg rating — 15,586 ratings
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50

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3.76 avg rating — 50 ratings
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51

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3.57 avg rating — 6,000 ratings
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52

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3.95 avg rating — 254,755 ratings
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53

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3.89 avg rating — 25,056 ratings
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54

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4.50 avg rating — 6 ratings
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55

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4.19 avg rating — 36 ratings
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56

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3.86 avg rating — 14 ratings
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57

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3.96 avg rating — 1,737,002 ratings
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58

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4.33 avg rating — 33 ratings
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59

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3.65 avg rating — 2,347 ratings
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60

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3.78 avg rating — 36 ratings
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60

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3.16 avg rating — 2,915 ratings
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62

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really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 65 ratings
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63

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4.15 avg rating — 2,389,708 ratings
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64

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3.99 avg rating — 2,297 ratings
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65

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3.77 avg rating — 5,169 ratings
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66

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4.60 avg rating — 716 ratings
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67

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3.98 avg rating — 98 ratings
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68

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4.12 avg rating — 9,064 ratings
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69

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3.89 avg rating — 336,366 ratings
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70

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4.05 avg rating — 2,790 ratings
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71

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3.87 avg rating — 30,725 ratings
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72

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3.34 avg rating — 58 ratings
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73

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4.02 avg rating — 9,239 ratings
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74

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4.17 avg rating — 1,103 ratings
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75

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4.12 avg rating — 3,677,821 ratings
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76

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3.84 avg rating — 706,170 ratings
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77

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3.80 avg rating — 10 ratings
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78

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3.83 avg rating — 279,159 ratings
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79

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3.97 avg rating — 171 ratings
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80

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4.13 avg rating — 90 ratings
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81

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3.81 avg rating — 1,430 ratings
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82

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4.33 avg rating — 15 ratings
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83

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3.98 avg rating — 15,958 ratings
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84

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4.51 avg rating — 118 ratings
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85

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3.96 avg rating — 322,842 ratings
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86

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4.14 avg rating — 117,875 ratings
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87

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4.13 avg rating — 7,770 ratings
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88

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4.05 avg rating — 9,306 ratings
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89

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3.86 avg rating — 703 ratings
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90

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4.23 avg rating — 1,793 ratings
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91

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4.02 avg rating — 2,693 ratings
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91

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4.03 avg rating — 461 ratings
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93

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3.59 avg rating — 17,693 ratings
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94

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3.36 avg rating — 5,609 ratings
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95

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3.77 avg rating — 12,306 ratings
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96

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4.20 avg rating — 245 ratings
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97

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4.09 avg rating — 3,868 ratings
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98

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3.80 avg rating — 991 ratings
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99

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3.46 avg rating — 2,815 ratings
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100

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3.38 avg rating — 260 ratings
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167 books · 111 voters · list created August 15th, 2009 by Jacobmartin (votes) .
63 likes · 
Lists are re-scored approximately every 5 minutes.


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Comments Showing 1-5 of 5 (5 new)

dateUp arrow    newest »

message 1: by Jacobmartin (new)

Jacobmartin Ok, I've added seven of my favorite dangerous books, but there's so many more I haven't even mentioned! Please feel free to add more of your own!


message 2: by John (new)

John Burns No offence but this is a stupid idea for a list.

Exactly what is a dangerous idea? Surely any idea becomes dangerous when it's misapplied? An idea is only as dangerous as the idiots who get ahold of it.


message 3: by Jacobmartin (new)

Jacobmartin Killthepopular wrote: "No offence but this is a stupid idea for a list.

Exactly what is a dangerous idea? Surely any idea becomes dangerous when it's misapplied? An idea is only as dangerous as the idiots who get ahol..."


The idea came to me as there was a festival in Sydney called "The Festival of Dangerous Ideas" or something. The list here's not really meant to class ideas as so much completely dangerous, but a list of books that have been considered dangerous at some time or another. Whether or not they're dangerous now is not the issue, the issue is the history of ideas that may have been considered dangerous at some point.

If you can find any particularly good examples of literature that has both been called dangerous and has some literary implications for the world since, I suggest you add them to this list, which is far from complete. Remember, it's not about whether YOU think an idea is dangerous, it's about books that have been challenged as dangerous at some point in history.




message 4: by John (last edited Aug 16, 2009 02:25PM) (new)

John Burns Surely these parameters account for 99% of classic novels ever published?

Nearly every good book ever published for example has been banned in one american school or another because of the perceived affect it will have on the students...


message 5: by Greyweather (last edited Aug 16, 2009 07:04PM) (new)

Greyweather Killthepopular wrote: "Surely these parameters account for 99% of classic novels ever published?"

Not to mention:
Every religious text, book about religion, book about atheism, or philosophy book
Every science book
Every history book
Every book of political science or political theory
Every book on psychology or sociology
Every book about about race, gender, sexual orientation (or hell, sex of any kind)
And the list just goes on and on...


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