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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4.02 avg rating — 4,616,104 ratings
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3.80 avg rating — 3,921,902 ratings
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5

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4.01 avg rating — 122,615 ratings
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6

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4.45 avg rating — 321,027 ratings
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7

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3.97 avg rating — 2,875,233 ratings
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8

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4.16 avg rating — 27,835 ratings
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9

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3.99 avg rating — 891,078 ratings
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10

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4.03 avg rating — 1,430,153 ratings
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11

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4.03 avg rating — 1,624,935 ratings
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12

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3.71 avg rating — 72,252 ratings
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13

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3.18 avg rating — 43,765 ratings
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14

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3.94 avg rating — 2,539,253 ratings
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15

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4.30 avg rating — 54,484 ratings
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16

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3.88 avg rating — 430,512 ratings
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17

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4.35 avg rating — 1,517,305 ratings
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18

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4.06 avg rating — 381,102 ratings
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19

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4.23 avg rating — 24,835 ratings
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20

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3.69 avg rating — 408,313 ratings
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21

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4.35 avg rating — 10,004,390 ratings
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22

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3.92 avg rating — 327,405 ratings
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23

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4.13 avg rating — 119,697 ratings
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24

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4.37 avg rating — 478,434 ratings
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25

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4.09 avg rating — 268,034 ratings
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26

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4.42 avg rating — 113 ratings
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26

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4.30 avg rating — 200 ratings
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28

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4.29 avg rating — 49 ratings
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29

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3.61 avg rating — 3,534 ratings
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30

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4.36 avg rating — 157,595 ratings
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31

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3.87 avg rating — 38,550 ratings
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32

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3.78 avg rating — 155,487 ratings
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33

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3.88 avg rating — 1,018,115 ratings
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34

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4.01 avg rating — 299,228 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 — 33,577 ratings
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37

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3.92 avg rating — 11,195 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 — 420,449 ratings
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40

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4.17 avg rating — 250,775 ratings
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42

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4.36 avg rating — 4,200,621 ratings
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43

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3.74 avg rating — 7,385 ratings
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44

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3.82 avg rating — 361 ratings
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45

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3.84 avg rating — 4,687 ratings
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46

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4.09 avg rating — 31,588 ratings
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47

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4.30 avg rating — 175 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 — 15,800 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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3.56 avg rating — 6,093 ratings
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52

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3.95 avg rating — 257,085 ratings
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53

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3.89 avg rating — 25,643 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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4.14 avg rating — 37 ratings
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56

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3.71 avg rating — 14 ratings
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57

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3.96 avg rating — 1,758,058 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 — 2,348 ratings
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60

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3.76 avg rating — 37 ratings
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60

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3.13 avg rating — 2,853 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 — 2,458,966 ratings
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64

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3.98 avg rating — 2,351 ratings
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65

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3.77 avg rating — 5,188 ratings
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66

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4.61 avg rating — 724 ratings
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67

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3.97 avg rating — 99 ratings
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68

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4.11 avg rating — 9,229 ratings
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69

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3.89 avg rating — 338,457 ratings
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70

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4.04 avg rating — 2,859 ratings
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71

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3.88 avg rating — 31,212 ratings
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72

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3.34 avg rating — 59 ratings
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73

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4.01 avg rating — 9,547 ratings
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74

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4.17 avg rating — 1,125 ratings
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75

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4.12 avg rating — 3,759,407 ratings
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76

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3.84 avg rating — 710,143 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 — 280,932 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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4.17 avg rating — 89 ratings
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81

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3.81 avg rating — 1,446 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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3.99 avg rating — 16,174 ratings
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84

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4.50 avg rating — 117 ratings
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85

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3.96 avg rating — 328,991 ratings
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86

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4.14 avg rating — 119,822 ratings
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87

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4.13 avg rating — 7,794 ratings
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88

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4.05 avg rating — 9,347 ratings
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89

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3.85 avg rating — 721 ratings
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90

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4.23 avg rating — 1,795 ratings
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91

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4.02 avg rating — 2,747 ratings
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91

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4.02 avg rating — 469 ratings
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93

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3.59 avg rating — 17,989 ratings
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94

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3.35 avg rating — 5,723 ratings
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95

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3.77 avg rating — 12,585 ratings
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96

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4.21 avg rating — 246 ratings
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97

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4.09 avg rating — 4,007 ratings
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98

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3.80 avg rating — 999 ratings
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99

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3.46 avg rating — 2,861 ratings
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100

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3.39 avg rating — 264 ratings
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160 books · 110 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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