Commonly Banned Authors
Some of the most popular authors today have been banned at one point or another. Here is a short list and a few reasons. You may find some of your favourites are �inappropriate� for your own reading.
Maya Angelou�Her novels preach tolerance of homosexual and pre-marital sex. Many fundamentalist religious groups want to ban her books.
Aristophanes�Even ancient philosophers are not exempt from censorship. His writings �encourage atheism and other undesirable avocations.�
Judy Blume�Her novels (some of them) contain premarital sex and homosexual references. Yes, the same woman who wrote
Are you there, God? It�s Me, Margaret .
Lewis Carrol�The man who wrote
Alice in Wonderland has endured, over the years, accusations by groups wishing to ban his work that they �encourage drug use and child abuse.�
Naom Chomsky�This classic writer has been said to �invite anarchy and atheism.�
Anthony Burgess�His novels contain sexual situations and profanity.
Daniel De Foe�Yes, he who wrote
Robinson Crusoe has been called �dangerously nurturing of the desire to run away.�
The Marquis De Sade�Known for his pornographic writings, de Sade was locked up in a mental asylum for his last days. His works live on, and are constantly alleged to be �insulting, blasphemous and pornographic.� They are, but Sade was a man who did not act upon his actions if he could write them down.
William Faulkner�His books are �insulting and contain vulgar situations.�
F. Scott Fitzgerald�His novels are �degrading and upsetting� towards the reader.
Anne Frank�Her classic diary (the indisputable record of Nazi Holland) has been called �too unsettling and inappropriate� for classrooms or leisure reading.
Ernest Hemmingway�His books have been called �blasphemous and frightening.�
Aldous Huxley�His
Brave New World has been called �centred around negative activity� and �an ambassador for atheism.�
James Joyce�The classic Irish writer of
Ulysses has had his work alleged to be �a mockery of brilliant literature� and �inviting of evil temptations.�
George Orwell�The author of
Animal Farm has been called �disrespectful to society.� (
Animal Farm is a satire/documentation of the Russian Revolution and the Napoleonic wars.)
Sylvia Plath�The poet has had her work called �negative centred� and �unsettling.�
Anne Rice�Her novels about vampires and other unsavory things have been called �too frightening, unhappy and evil� for teenagers. Nonetheless, her books have sold millions of copies and have been made into multi-million dollar movies (often starring Antonio Banderas!)
Salman Rushdie�Has been censored for his �blasphemous and evil�
Satanic Verses. See our page on him for more details.
J.D. Salinger�His books, which contain sexual situations, have been called �inciting of evil habits.�
William Shakespeare�The King of innudendo, swordplay (and foreplay!), Shakespeare�s works have been called �disgusting, pathetic, incestutous, evil, blasphemous, terrible, disturbing, small-minded (!) works of treason.� Whew. Not bad for the highest selling author in history.
Fact: a drama teacher in the U.S. was fired from his job after trying to stage Sahkespere's play "The Taming of the Shrew". This play was called anit-Semitic and sexist, as was the play "The Merchant of Venice" John Steinbeck�His works have been called �blasphemous and insulting.�
Jonathan Swift�His
Gulliver�s Travels has been called �disrespectful and obscene.�
J.R.R. Tolkein�His
Lord of the Rings trilogy has been called �disrespectful of Christian values.�
Mark Twain�An author whose work is often alleged to be �racist and obscene.�
Voltaire�This French philosopher was an atheist and published several pamphlets encouraging his beliefs.
Walt Whitman�This poet has been called �sacrilegious� and �utterly evil.�
Victor Hugo- "Les Miserables", this book was banned for displaying prostution, murder, protraying the church as unimportant and glorifying the French Revolution.
