What novels have had a substantial real-world effect?

[MsAmerica]

What novels have had such a powerful impact that they triggered an actual change in socio-political policies or overall public opinion on an important subject?

I can only think of two, offhand:
Uncle Tom’s Cabin, by Harriet Beecher Stowe
The Jungle, by Upton Sinclair Any others?

As far as I know, books like Grapes of Wrath may have had enthusiasts, but by the time it came out, it was too late for any relevant policy. And I know that Dickens may have influenced public policy, but I don’t think it was due to a particular novel.

Yes and no. The act of censorship is the same whether one is far-left or far-right, yes. This isn’t the point. Societies around the world all indulge in the act of censorship: we don’t allow fiction or non-fiction as it depicts (for example) child sex abuse, or racially aggravated hate speech, or attacks on religious freedom. These things are apolitical to lesser or greater extents.

Elon Musk is (now) completely anti-regulation and apparently pro-absolutely “free speech” when it comes to expression of thought on his platform. Look where that’s got the world (Grok and AI-generated pornographic imagery which he’s now conceded might not be ideal). It’s hard and non-stop work deciding what to censor and what to print. I don’t think George Orwell was advocating for a world run by Elon Musks.

In terms of actual change

Uncle Tom's Cabin
Black Beauty
The Waterbabies

A lot of the others were highly influential and changed viewpoints/encouraged public discussion but in terms of changes in policy/laws these three. I read Black Beauty in 4th class (traumatised on some level - still think occasionally about Ginger going to the knacker's yard) and Waterbabies in 5th class.

I think the totalitarian state depicted in 1984 banned books/recalibrated words for different reasons than the censorship/language modification which happens now. In 1984 it was part of a wider means of total societal control. What we're experiencing now is to my mind more to do with the regular swings western Europe has between puritanism and permissiveness. We had our permissive era in the 90s and now we're buttoning ourselves up again.

Frank Herbert's Dune.

Its depiction of Arrakis as a "living planet" strongly influenced the growing environmental movement and concepts of ecology. It also explored themes of empire decline, the dangers of power concentration, obedience to authority, and resource control. The plot explored and integrated Middle Eastern influences, desert cultures, and dives into religious mysticism.

Some of these themes were later reflected in Star Wars and Game of Thrones.

A lot of Dickens had impact poverty policy (for better and worse)

Re We need to talk about Kevin.. it's been years so I can't remember all the details, but it created a greater empathy for a parent of a disturbed child. The thinking previously was often that the parents hadn't done enough or were emotionally neglectful.

The Curious incident of the Dog in the night time sparked a lot of discussion about autism and gave some insight into the mental processes an autistic person may go through.

The night before Christmas by Clement c Moore for it's description of Santa / St Nicholas. I don't know if the 8 reindeer names were created by the author or based on folklore, but the story still has a huge cultural influence

Rousseau’s Émile is the great exception - it’s not much read today in England as it’s very long and dull although it’s referred to in books on education or on literature. Basically it transformed people’s views on education from a very formal one to a more child-centred approach. I would argue that Émile makes Rousseau a “great man of history” with the caveat that he was not fitted for this by his character nor his morals & that if he lived today, no sensible person would let him near a child.

I’ve just checked on Wikipedia & not all of his ideas were apparently original - but no-one else put them forward with the impact that he did. Yes, he surfed the Zeitgeist with regards to attitude towards nature etc - but then he did a lot to create that Zeitgeist with his previous blockbuster La Nouvelle Héloïse. I’m not sure other people would have done it either - France wasn’t exactly short of Enlightenment philosophers in the 18th century but the others were to busy writing the Encyclopaedia / visiting Frederick & Catherine the Great etc to have the same impact on education. You also can’t say that Rousseau’s own actions helped the impact of his book, as he didn’t put them into practice - other people read his book & did. Even now, you could probably analyse education in Rousseau terms - the Early Years Foundation Stage feels very Rousseau, whereas SATS feel more pre-Rousseau.

For me, what makes the impact of Émile so extraordinary is that Rousseau as an author of fiction (with La Nouvelle Héloïse) is very much on the same level as Goethe with Werther or more recently Twilight & 50 Shades. None of the other texts are thought to have had a positive impact on people - yet reading Rousseau inspired people to garden & be kinder to children.

Very interesting @Benvenuto !

I think in the case of Mockingbird it is about how it shapes the debates about racism during the 1960s and beyond--the impact is huge partly because it is such a 'teachable' novel. It's given to teenagers across the globe to read.

Changing hearts and minds--more difficult to assess in terms of real world impact.

I believe that the Harry Potter series is credited with dramatically increasing the number of children (particularly boys) reading for pleasure.

To Kill A Mockingbird was also influential within the legal profession because of Atticus Finch.

The people who owned the rights to Roald Dahl’s work changed it in the hope of making more money and getting free press from the announcement of the changes. You can demand change as much as you want but it’s the rightsholder who decides so it doesn’t matter where on the political spectrum the demands are coming from. It’s pure capitalism.

Sorry not RTFT, but Dicken's Nicholas Nickelby was instrumental in the decline in Yorkshire boarding schools which were profoundly abusive money-spinners. Similarly Tom Brown's School Days exposed brutal bullying in boarding schools but it took a long time for it to end.

@SharonEllis apologies, I've only just seen your query re RTP and the Labour Party election. There's quite a lot written about it, I'll try to attach a screenshot of something from the TUC website but if you Google "RTP and Labour landslide" quite a few links pop up.

Thank you, very interesting. Fred Ball also write a biography of Tressell I think.

I agree. But I would guess that it's much more frequent that there are indirectly influential or inspiring novels, and much harder to know that for sure. I imagine that early women novelists prompted real-world change by the mere fact of announcing that such a thing as a popular woman author even existed!

Interesting example!

Interesting. Also about the name!

Often referenced, yes, but personally I don't think they made a damn bit of difference.
It has amazed me that the country that gave us 1984 would allow the level of surveillance currently in the U.K.

Another interesting example! Yes!

Thank you! Sadly, it often can come down to getting your book read, or your movie seen, by someone with actual power - as opposed to creating a groundswell.

Can you give any examples to back this up? I've watched quite a few documentaries on the civil rights era, and I've never heard any person, black or white, cite the book or movie as being in any way galvanizing.

Your comment reminds me that I often post political articles in American forums, and sometimes get the impatient reply: "Old news! We know that already!" I keep explaining that sometimes I post it because the writing is so wonderful, or the overview is so concise.
Still, I'm thinking of things that had a direct impact, not something that gradually changed opinion. I haven't (yet) read Atlas Shrugged, but I agree that I've heard people cite it as enlightening for them.
And thanks for mentioning your appreciation of this thread. I thought the forum might enjoy it, since so many of the threads are just "What shall I read?"

I think I'd disagree that it had caused any direct result, but I think that the resultant television show was likely the first time that many white people watched an major story about black people.