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1. =PRESENTATION=
THE MOST ICONIC EXAMPLES OF
CENSORSHIP THROUGHOUT
HISTORY

2. WHAT IS CENSORSHIP AND HOW OLD IS IT?
The terms "censor" and "censorship" refer to the act of
controlling, suppressing, or banning any form of
information or idea (books, films, pictures, etc.) usually
done by government or any other form of high
institution, in order to either protect or leave others in
ignorance. It has been an indicator of dictatorship for
centuries, and there have been signs of censorship since
ancient times, like in Ancient Rome, where poets like
Ovid and Juvenal were banned or punished for their
seditious writings.
“Censorship reflects a society's lack of confidence in
itself. It is a hallmark of an authoritarian regime”
(Stewart).
“Censorship reflects a society's lack of confidence in itself. It is a hallmark of
an authoritarian regime” (Stewart)

3. THE BRIEF AND DIVERSE HISTORY OF
CENSORSHIP
The execution of
Socrates, the first well
known case of public
censorship.
399 BC
The ruination of Chinese
culture and history due
to book burning, started
by minister Li Si and
emperor Qin Shi Huang,
in order to make people
believe that the world
started during their
times as leaders.
213 BC
The ban of the
German translation of
the Bible, which lead
to the formation of
the Lutheran Church.
1624
The censorship in
Nazi Germany, the
greatest case of
censorship in the
20th century. Many
books written by
Jewish, communist, or
socialist authors were
burned.
1933
The first case of
internet restrictions in
China, where as of
now more than
18,000 sites are
blocked, including
Google services,
Twitter, Facebook,
and Wikipedia.
2000

4. AN IRONIC BAN OF FAHRENHEIT 451 BY
RAY BRADBURY
The book about a dystopian future in which books are
banned and burned, published in 1953, was actually
either banned or restricted in some schools in the US,
mostly due to a specific scene in the book were the
Bible is being burned. There were some particular cases
of such censorship in 1987, 1992, and 2006.
OTHER ICONIC EXAMPLES OF CENSORSHIP

5. CATHOLIC CHURCH BANNING GALILEO’S
THEORIES ABOUT THE SOLAR SYSTEM
The heliocentric system of Galileo was condemned by
the Catholic Church for quite a long time, though it did
not stopped the spreading of it, and even outside Italy
the system was becoming more popular. The scientist
was forced to abandon his discoveries and went
through a lot of troubles with the Church, all because of
his progressive views, which were proven to be true.
OTHER ICONIC EXAMPLES OF CENSORSHIP

6. BOLSHEVIK CENSORSHIP IN RUSSIA
The Bolshevik movement in 1917 in Russia was an
impactful time, when the government was banning any
content that did not feed into communistic beliefs.
Such things included the Bible, Quran, and oddly
enough, The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir
Arthur Conan Doyle (because it promoted occultism).
OTHER ICONIC EXAMPLES OF CENSORSHIP

7. CENSORSHIP OF CHARLES DARWIN’S
ORIGIN OF SPECIES
The book that is quite famous for introducing Darwin’s
theory of evolution was banned in libraries of
universities (and particularly in the library of Trinity
College, where Darwin himself was a student). The
teaching of this theory was also forbidden in Tennessee
schools, all due to the fact that this theory was equated
with atheism.
OTHER ICONIC EXAMPLES OF CENSORSHIP

8. BANNING OF BRAILLE BOOKS IN PARIS
In 1442 in Paris, the director of the local school for the
blind ordered all books with braille writing to be
destroyed, because he did not want blind people to be
independent and read themselves. This banning almost
put the braille form of writing at risk of being lost, but
some workers at the school saved the books and
continued to provide students with them.
OTHER ICONIC EXAMPLES OF CENSORSHIP

9. MTV BANNING "I WANT TO BREAK FREE" BY
QUEEN
Recently becoming a more popular topic due to the
popularity of the movie Bohemian Rhapsody, the fact
that the American MTV banned the music video of the
famous song "I Want to Break Free" by British sensation
Queen is one of the best examples of how censorship
lets down original artists. The song was in the charts for
8 weeks after coming out, but was banned at the time
due to the promotion of crossdressing, as in the video
the members of the band were dressed like women,
despite all being male.
OTHER ICONIC EXAMPLES OF CENSORSHIP

10. BANNED BOOKS AND ODD REASONS
BEHIND THE CENSORSHIP
Was banned in a few
schools and public
libraries in different states
and countries, due to the
fact that it promoted
witchcraft.
HARRY POTTER
Was banned also in some
regions for some time
due to an extensive use of
the n-word. The slur was
edited out later on.
THE ADVENTURES OF
HUCKLEBERRY FINN Was considered a very
controversial piece of
literature some time ago,
and was also banned in
schools not only because
of the swear words used
in it, but also due to
promotion of a rebellious
lifestyle.
CATCHER IN THE RYE

11. Some other examples of banned
books and why they were banned
LITTLE RED
RIDING HOOD
Was banned because in the
basket the girl was carrying
there was a wine bottle.
ALICE
IN WONDERLAND
Was banned in China
because animals use a
human language in the
book.
SHAKESPEARE’S
RICHARD II
Had a whole scene taken
out because Queen
Elizabeth I was angry about
the part where the king is
deposed from his throne.

12. WORKS CITED
"Bannings and Burnings in History." Freedom to Read, Book and Periodical Council,
www.freedomtoread.ca/links-and-resources/bannings-and-burnings-in-
history/#.XGMzfyvJzIV.
Cellania, Miss. "12 Books That Have (Ironically) Been Banned in the U.S." Neatorama, 2011,
www.neatorama.com/2011/09/29/12-books-that-have-ironically-been-banned-in-the-u-s/.
"Galileo, the Church and That Ban." The Renaissance Mathematicus, 2017,
thonyc.wordpress.com/2017/09/28/galileo-the-church-and-that-ban/.
"History of Censorship Timeline." Preceden, www.preceden.com/timelines/174747-history-
of-censorship-timeline.
Mills, Ted. "Watch Queen’s Dragtastic “I Want to Break Free” Video: It Was More than
America & MTV Could Handle (1984)." Open Culture, 2018,
www.openculture.com/2018/11/watch-queens-dragtastic-i-want-to-break-free-video.html.
Newth, Mette. "The Long History Of Censorship." Beacon for Freedom of Expression, National
Library of Norway, 2010, www.beaconforfreedom.org/liste.html?tid=415&art_id=475.
Stewart, Potter. United States V. Ginzburg, 1965, p. 378 U.S. 184.
"What Is Censorship?" Global Internet Library Campaign,
gilc.org/speech/osistudy/censorship/index.html.