Banned and challenged classics

In Italy in 1559, the Roman Index prohibited Machiavelli's works, including this politically pragmatic guide, on religious grounds.

In Britain in 1818, Bowdler's family Shakespeare removed sexual language from this tragedy of young lovers and family hatred.

In Britain in 1818, Bowdler's family Shakespeare removed indecent expressions from this play of borrowing, courtship and threatened punishment.

In Britain in 1818, Bowdler's family Shakespeare cut sexual innuendo from this comedy of lovers and interfering fairies.

In Britain in 1818, Bowdler's family Shakespeare cut the Porter's sexual jokes from this tragedy of murderous ambition.

In France in 1665, Molière cut religiously provocative material after objections to this play's treatment of hypocrisy and unbelief.

In Switzerland in 1759, Geneva authorities ordered this satire burned for its attacks on religion and morality.

In the German states in 1775, Leipzig banned this consuming love story amid fears it encouraged suicide.

In Russia in 1852, imperial authorities banned this portrayal of slavery because of its implications for established authority.

In the United States in 1882, Boston authorities threatened this poetry collection's publisher with prosecution over allegedly obscene passages.

In France in 1857, this account of marital dissatisfaction faced prosecution for offending public and religious morality.

In Italy in 1864, the Catholic Index prohibited this story of punishment and mercy on religious and moral grounds.

In China in 1931, Hunan authorities banned Alice's adventures because talking animals supposedly placed animals alongside humans.

In Germany in 1880, pressure from a leading actress forced an alternative ending that softened Nora's rejection of marriage.

In 1885, Concord Public Library in the United States excluded this river journey for its supposedly coarse language.

In the Philippines in 1887, Spanish colonial authorities prohibited this reformer's story for its criticism of clerical power.

In the United States in 2011, Albemarle County schools removed this Holmes mystery from sixth-grade reading over anti-Mormon depictions.

In the United States in 1890, a magazine editor cut passages suggesting same-sex desire from this story of concealed corruption.

In the United States in 1987, Baptist College in Charleston challenged this lost-love story over language and sexual references.

In Britain in 1960, this story of an affair prompted an obscenity prosecution over explicit sexual descriptions.