Bob Cox spotted This Toronto Star Article that asks is literature incapable of inspiring moronic acts of mayhem?
They say people are influenced by what they see and read, and authors have little control over how people will react to the ideas in their books, so when will we start seeing the lawsuits?
“Many of the controversial novels of the last century were publicly condemned because it was believed they would lead to a decay in public morals. These criticisms were often patronizing (“Won’t somebody please think of the children?”), expressing the belief that less educated members of society were likely to imitate anything and everything they read. The prosecutor in the 1960 British obscenity trial of Lady Chatterley’s Lover asked jurors if it was the kind of book they wanted their wife or servants to read.“
Real life?
Does anyone know of any murders that were copycatted from a book? I was asked this on a message board where I put this link and I couldn’t think of any.