In this Collection, we've gathered together a selection of fictional and real-life narratives that share the theme of Challenging Authority. These selections feature protagonists and real-world figures who stand up to both powerful individuals and oppressive systems in an array of cultural and historical settings.
Publication year 1851
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Guilt, Relationships: Family, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed
Tags Classic Fiction, Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, American Literature, History: World, Historical Fiction, Gothic Literature, Trauma / Abuse / Violence
The House of the Seven Gables (1851) is a novel by American author Nathaniel Hawthorne. With the eponymous New England mansion serving as the novel’s centerpiece, the story charts the fortunes and misfortunes of the Pyncheon family as they navigate the haunting legacy of their family’s violent past. The novel explores the themes The Influence of the Past on the Present, The Complications of Home, and The Legacy of Violence. Like Hawthorne’s earlier novel, The... Read The House of the Seven Gables Summary
Publication year 2003
Genre Reference/Text Book, Nonfiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Natural World: Climate, Natural World: Environment, Natural World: Food, Natural World: Place, Society: Colonialism, Society: Community, Society: Economics, Society: Globalization, Society: Nation, Society: Politics & Government, Society: War, Values/Ideas: Equality, Values/Ideas: Order & Chaos, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Values/Ideas: Science & Technology
Tags Education, Education, Anthropology, Anthropology, Science / Nature, Philosophy, Philosophy, Politics / Government, History: World, Sociology
Publication year 1831
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Fear, Emotions/Behavior: Gratitude, Emotions/Behavior: Hate & Anger, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Regret, Emotions/Behavior: Revenge, Emotions/Behavior: Shame & Pride, Identity: Disability, Identity: Language, Identity: Sexuality, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Relationships: Family, Relationships: Friendship, Society: Class, Society: Community, Society: Education, Society: Nation, Society: Politics & Government, Values/Ideas: Art, Values/Ideas: Fate, Values/Ideas: Good & Evil, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Order & Chaos, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Values/Ideas: Trust & Doubt
Tags Classic Fiction, Historical Fiction, Romance, Gothic Literature, French Literature, History: World
The Hunchback of Notre-Dame is an 1831 gothic novel by French author Victor Hugo, originally published under the title Notre-Dame de Paris. Set in 15th-century France, the novel concerns the intertwined stories of Quasimodo, Esmeralda, and Archdeacon Claude Frollo. The story has been adapted many times for theater, television, and film, including an animated film by Disney released in 1996.This guide refers to the 2009 Oxford Classics edition of the novel, translated from French to... Read The Hunchback of Notre-Dame Summary
Publication year 2015
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Life/Time: Coming of Age, Values/Ideas: Good & Evil, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed
Tags Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, Children's Literature, Fantasy, Action / Adventure, Religion / Spirituality
Publication year 2019
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Friendship, Society: Community, Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger, Relationships: Family, Life/Time: The Future, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance
Tags Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, Trauma / Abuse / Violence, Mystery / Crime Fiction, Fantasy, Religion / Spirituality
Critically acclaimed, The Institute (2019) is the 60th entry in Stephen King’s body of more than 100 works. While best known as a horror writer (and one of the most popular writers since the 1970s in general), King dabbles in many genres, including fantasy, mystery, and science fiction—often blurring the boundaries between them. The Institute is more sci-fi thriller than horror, sharing story beats and themes with King’s earlier novels Firestarter and It: It follows... Read The Institute Summary
Publication year 1999
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Identity: Race, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Values/Ideas: Literature
Tags Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, African American Literature, Race / Racism, Mystery / Crime Fiction, Fantasy
The Intuitionist (1999) is a postmodern novel by American author Colson Whitehead. It is set in an unnamed city that resembles New York in the 1940s, but with one major difference: in this city, elevators (or “vertical transport”) have enormous political and economic clout. The City’s Department of Elevator Inspectors is collapsing into a corrupt power-struggle between “Empiricist” inspectors, who perform mechanical testing to establish the safety of an elevator, and the new breed of... Read The Intuitionist Summary
Publication year 1897
Genre Novella, Fiction
Themes Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Society: Class, Values/Ideas: Good & Evil
Tags Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, British Literature, Religion / Spirituality, Science / Nature, Victorian Period, Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, History: World, Fantasy, Classic Fiction
H. G. Wells is one of the earliest science fiction authors, sometimes referred to as the father of the genre. His 1897 novel, The Invisible Man, follows an albino scientist who discovers the secret to turning himself invisible. The novel’s blend of fantastical science and realistic, mundane detail is a signature of Wells. This novel has influenced generations of writers and artists, both through its powerful prose and fascinating plot, as well as for its... Read The Invisible Man Summary
Publication year 2021
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Family, Relationships: Siblings, Society: Colonialism, Society: Politics & Government, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed
Tags Fantasy, LGBTQ, Romance
Publication year 1968
Genre Book, Nonfiction
Themes Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Society: Class, Emotions/Behavior: Grief
Tags History: U.S., Natural Disaster, Industrial Revolution, American Literature, History: World
American author and historian David McCullough’s debut book, The Johnstown Flood (1968), is a work of social history that chronicles the Johnstown Flood of 1889, a deluge of water and debris that tore through a steel community in Central Pennsylvania, killing more than 2,000 people and causing millions of dollars in damage. The flood resulted from a dam bursting in the mountains above Johnstown. The dam had been somewhat hurriedly built to create a lake... Read The Johnstown Flood Summary
Publication year 2015
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Good & Evil, Emotions/Behavior: Apathy, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Emotions/Behavior: Guilt, Emotions/Behavior: Hate & Anger, Emotions/Behavior: Loneliness, Emotions/Behavior: Revenge, Identity: Mental Health, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed
Tags Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Mystery / Crime Fiction, Psychological Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction
Publication year 2023
Genre Book, Nonfiction
Themes Society: Politics & Government, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed
Tags Politics / Government, History: U.S., History: World, Religion / Spirituality
Publication year 1943
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Identity: Femininity, Identity: Gender, Identity: Masculinity, Natural World: Place, Relationships: Marriage, Society: Class, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies
Tags Mystery / Crime Fiction, Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction
The Lady in the Lake, by Raymond Chandler, is a detective novel originally published in 1943. Chandler was born in Chicago but later moved to California, and he drew on his experiences living there when writing his Philip Marlowe novels. Marlowe, a down-on-his-luck Los Angeles detective, first appears in Chandler’s novel The Big Sleep, which was adapted into a film noir in 1946 with Marlowe played by Humphrey Bogart. In the 1946 adaptation of The... Read The Lady in the Lake Summary
Publication year 1968
Genre Poem, Fiction
Themes Values/Ideas: Power & Greed
Tags Free verse, Lyric Poem, Gender / Feminism, Depression / Suicide
Publication year 2022
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Identity: Gender, Life/Time: The Past, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed
Tags Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Mystery / Crime Fiction
Publication year 2017
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Natural World: Appearance & Reality, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice
Tags Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Mystery / Crime Fiction, Psychological Fiction, Trauma / Abuse / Violence, Modern Classic Fiction
Publication year 2024
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Daughters & Sons, Relationships: Family, Relationships: Fathers, Society: Class, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed
Tags Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Mystery / Crime Fiction
Publication year 1978
Genre Short Story, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Siblings, Emotions/Behavior: Guilt, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Emotions/Behavior: Regret, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed
Tags Drama / Tragedy, Depression / Suicide, Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction
Publication year 1941
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Values/Ideas: Fate
Tags Classic Fiction, Historical Fiction, Romance, American Literature, History: World
The Last Tycoon is an unfinished novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald that charts the rise of Monroe Stahr, a film producer in 1930s Hollywood. Its fragments were collected and edited by Fitzgerald’s friend Edmund Wilson and published posthumously in 1941, the year after Fitzgerald’s death. The book’s protagonist is widely considered to be modelled after the real-life film producer Irving Thalberg, whom Fitzgerald greatly admired. The story focuses on the inner workings of the film... Read The Last Tycoon Summary
Publication year 1971
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Identity: Mental Health, Values/Ideas: Good & Evil, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed
Tags Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, Classic Fiction, Fantasy, Philosophy, Philosophy
The Lathe of Heaven is a speculative science fiction-fantasy novel written by Ursala K. Le Guin. Originally published as two parts in the pulp science fiction magazine Amazing Stories in 1971, the novel centers around an ordinary man, George Orr, who lives in overpopulated, perpetually rain-soaked Portland, Oregon, in 2002. When authorities force George to accept psychiatric care for his substance use disorder, he falls under the care of Dr. William Haber, a dream-analysis specialist... Read The Lathe Of Heaven Summary
Publication year 2018
Genre Book, Nonfiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Forgiveness, Emotions/Behavior: Hate & Anger, Identity: Femininity, Identity: Gender, Identity: Masculinity, Identity: Mental Health, Natural World: Appearance & Reality, Relationships: Family, Self Discovery, Society: Community, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Values/Ideas: Science & Technology
Tags Psychology, Self Help, Philosophy, Business / Economics, Leadership/Organization/Management, Sociology