Challenging Authority

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.

Oathbound

by Tracy Deonn

Publication year 2025

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Gender Identity, Race, Coming of Age, Friendship, Teamwork, Self Discovery, Community, Good & Evil, Justice, Power & Greed

Tags Fantasy, Action & Adventure, Science Fiction

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Oil and Marble

by Stephanie Storey

Publication year 2016

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Art, Conflict, Fear, Guilt, Hate & Anger, Hope, Joy, Love, Memory, Sexual Identity, Death, Appearance & Reality, Place, Family, Fathers, Teamwork, Self Discovery, Social Class, Community, Politics & Government, War, Beauty, Fate, Order & Chaos, Power & Greed, Safety & Danger, Science & Technology

Tags Life-Inspired Fiction, Historical Fiction, Arts & Culture, Renaissance

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Olga Dies Dreaming

by Xóchitl González

Publication year 2022

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Politics & Government, Family, Mothers, Sexual Identity, Race, Power & Greed, Colonialism, Economics

Tags Realistic Fiction, LGBTQ+, Social Class, Finance, US History, Natural Disaster, Parenting, Modern Classic Fiction, Romance

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Once Upon a Time

by Nadine Gordimer

Publication year 1989

Genre Short Story, Fiction

Themes Fear, Colonialism, Race, Power & Greed

Tags Fantasy, Race & Racism, Education, Education, Horror & Suspense, Historical Fiction, Classic Fiction

South African author Nadine Gordimer (1923-2014) published the short story “Once Upon a Time” in 1989 while South Africa was still under apartheid, an institutionalized system of racism that from 1948 until 1994 discriminated against all people who were not white. Gordimer was the daughter of Jewish immigrants. Though not an Afrikaner (a South African descended from 17th-century Dutch colonizers), Gordimer was white and therefore part of South Africa’s ruling minority. Gordimer wrote about characters... Read Once Upon a Time Summary

One-Dimensional Man

by Herbert Marcuse

Publication year 1964

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Economics, Politics & Government, Art, Power & Greed, Science & Technology, Community

Tags Philosophy, Politics & Government, Psychology, Education, Education, Business & Economics, Sociology, World History, Psychology, Philosophy

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One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

by Ken Kesey

Publication year 1962

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Mental Health, Justice, Power & Greed

Tags American Literature, Classic Fiction, Psychological Fiction, Mental Illness, Trauma & Abuse, Health, Relationships, Education, Education, Psychology, Psychology

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest is a historical fiction novel by Ken Kesey, published in 1962. Kesey drew on his experiences working in a veterans’ hospital to develop a critique of then-current psychiatric practices. The novel’s central conflict between a domineering nurse and an unruly patient can also be read as an allegory for the emerging culture wars of the 1960s. The novel was adapted into a Broadway play one year after its publication... Read One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest Summary

On Juneteenth

by Annette Gordon-Reed

Publication year 2021

Genre Essay Collection, Nonfiction

Themes Loyalty & Betrayal, Trust & Doubt, Justice, Power & Greed, Fear, Memory, Perseverance, Nostalgia, Conflict

Tags US History, Race & Racism, Social Justice, Black Lives Matter, Civil Rights & Jim Crow South, Education, Politics & Government, World History

... Read On Juneteenth Summary

On Photography

by Susan Sontag

Publication year 1977

Genre Essay Collection, Nonfiction

Themes Art, Colonialism, Power & Greed, Beauty, Economics, Nation, Politics & Government

Tags Arts & Culture, Philosophy, World History, Business & Economics, Social Class, Finance, Sociology, Literary Criticism, Philosophy, Classic Fiction

On Photography is a 1977 collection of seven essays by American scholar, activist, and philosopher Susan Sontag. The essays were published in the New York Review of Books from 1973 to 1977 before publication in a single volume. Sontag explores the history of photography and its relationship to reality, the fine arts, and sociopolitical power structures. Individual essays explore these various relationships between photography and the world through a different lens before the culminating exploration... Read On Photography Summary

On the Devil's Court

by Carl Deuker

Publication year 1991

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Coming of Age, Power & Greed, Literature

Tags Realistic Fiction, Sports, American Literature, Children`s Literature, Horror & Suspense, Fantasy

On the Devil’s Court is a novel aimed at teenage boys that follows 17-year-old Joe Faust through the basketball season of his senior year. Written by Carl Deuker, the book was originally published in 1988 and has remained a popular print title for more than 30 years. On the Devil’s Court was the first of three young adult sports novels by Deuker to be included among the Authors League of America Best Books for Young... Read On the Devil's Court Summary

On the Genealogy of Morals

by Friedrich Nietzsche

Publication year 1887

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Good & Evil, Power & Greed, Religion & Spirituality, Guilt, Social Class

Tags Philosophy, German Literature, Education, Education, World History, Psychology, Psychology, Philosophy, Classic Fiction, Politics & Government

Friedrich Nietzsche’s On the Genealogy of Morals: A Polemic (1887) is an analysis of the development of morality in human history. The renowned 19th-century philosopher wrote On the Genealogy of Morals to entice readers to his larger works. In it, he challenges traditional ideals about Christian morality and the origin of virtue and ethics. Nietzsche argues that moral values are products of social power. Qualities which society has deemed virtues—such as honesty, meekness, patience, and... Read On the Genealogy of Morals Summary

Operation Bounce House

by Matt Dinniman

Publication year 2026

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Conflict, Perseverance, Hate & Anger, Memory, Indigenous Identity, Future, Appearance & Reality, Place, Space, Friendship, Teamwork, Colonialism, Community, War, Good & Evil, Power & Greed, Science & Technology

Tags Science Fiction, Fantasy, Humor

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Ophie's Ghosts

by Justina Ireland

Publication year 2021

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Memory, Femininity, Race, Coming of Age, Death, The Past, Family, Social Class, Economics, Equality, Justice, Power & Greed, Religion & Spirituality

Tags Historical Fiction, Fantasy, Mystery & Crime Fiction, African American Literature

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Oresteia

by Aeschylus

Genre Play, Fiction

Themes Fate, Revenge, Power & Greed

Tags Classic Fiction, Tragedy, Mythology, Ancient Greece, Dramatic Literature, Fantasy

Written in 458 BC by Greek playwright Aeschylus, The Oresteia is a trilogy of plays that includes Agamemnon, The Libation Bearers, The Eumenides, as well as the lost satyr play, Proteus. The plays of The Oresteia are classic tragedies, a dramatic genre focused on the piteous and cathartic downfall of great heroes. The plays were written to be performed at the City Dionysia festival which celebrated Dionysus, god of wine and theater. The festival was... Read Oresteia Summary

Orlando Furioso

by Ludovico Ariosto

Publication year 1532

Genre Novel/Book in Verse, Fiction

Themes Love, Revenge, Gender Identity, War, Good & Evil, Fate, Loyalty & Betrayal, Power & Greed, Wins & Losses, Religion & Spirituality

Tags Narrative Poem, Gender & Feminism, European History, Love & Sexuality, Military & War, Italian Literature, Renaissance, Mental Illness, Medieval, World History, Fantasy, Classic Fiction

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Other Words for Home

by Jasmine Warga

Publication year 2019

Genre Novel/Book in Verse, Fiction

Themes Power & Greed, Fear, Race, Family

Tags Realistic Fiction, Coming of Age, Immigration & Refugeeism, Diversity, Race & Racism, American Literature, Children`s Literature, Modern Classic Fiction, Arts & Culture

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