--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Ever heard of anyone executed for…" description: "\"Ever heard of anyone executed for distributing copies of Grimm's fairy tales? Imagine people trying to smuggle copies of Hans Christian Andersen's work..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb1/eric-metaxas-1651_ancient_ever-heard-of-anyone-executed-for-distri_2394470.png" --- # Ever heard of anyone executed for distributing copies of… ![“Ever heard of anyone executed for distributing copies of Grimm's fairy tales? Imagine people trying to smuggle copies of Hans Christian Andersen's works into China? The Bible, which has been called a mere collection of myths has suffered all of these fates: even today, copies of the Bible are…” quote by Eric Metaxas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb1/eric-metaxas-1651_ancient_ever-heard-of-anyone-executed-for-distri_2394470.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb1/eric-metaxas-1651_ancient_ever-heard-of-anyone-executed-for-distri_2394470.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb1/eric-metaxas-1651_ancient_ever-heard-of-anyone-executed-for-distri_2394470.png) > “Ever heard of anyone executed for distributing copies of Grimm's fairy tales? Imagine people trying to smuggle copies of Hans Christian Andersen's works into China? The Bible, which has been called a mere collection of myths has suffered all of these fates: even today, copies of the Bible are banned and burned. There's something about this ancient book that threatens and frightens those in power.” [Eric Metaxas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-metaxas/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote highlights how powerful texts, from fairy tales to religious scriptures, have been suppressed because they challenge authority. **In simple terms:** Important books are often banned or destroyed by those in power. Key Takeaway Recognize the influence of ideas and protect free expression. Themes censorship power literature freedom of expression Mood defiant reflective Type historical cautionary When to use this quote - academic research - publishing - human rights advocacy - education - library science Key Concepts authoritarianism cultural control ideological threat Questions to Reflect On - What makes a book threatening to authority? - How can individuals defend vulnerable literature? A Different Perspective The quote does not address why some societies protect such works. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ancient](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ancient/) [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [China](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/china/) [Christian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christian/) [Fairy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fairy/) [Fairy tale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fairy-tale/) [Fairy tales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fairy-tales/) [Fate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fate/) [Myth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/myth/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Tales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tales/) [Today](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/today/) ## Related quotes > [Imagine an American Hans Christian Andersen, conceive of the Brothers Grimm living in Missouri, and you will approximate Howard Schwartz, a fable-maker and fable-gatherer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-ozick/imagine-an-american-hans-christian-andersen-conceive-of-the-brothers/) [Cynthia Ozick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-ozick/) > [I was brought up, as a lot of kids are, on 'Aesop's Fables,' 'Brothers Grimm,' 'La Fontaine,' all those sorts of things. Hans Christian…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-morpurgo/i-was-brought-up-as-a-lot-of-kids-are-on-aesop-s-fables-brothers/) [Michael Morpurgo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-morpurgo/) > [Sometimes, I go to Barnes & Noble with the sole intention of moving all copies of the bible to the fiction section.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-braff/sometimes-i-go-to-barnes-noble-with-the-sole-intention-of-moving-all/) [Zach Braff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-braff/) > [The Bible-banned, burned, beloved-is more widely read and more frequently attacked than any other book in history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-colson/the-bible-banned-burned-beloved-is-more-widely-read-and-more/) [Charles Colson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-colson/) > [The BIBLE - banned, burned, beloved. More widely read, more frequently attacked than any other book in history. Generations of intellectuals have attempted to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-colson/the-bible-banned-burned-beloved-more-widely-read-more-frequently-2/) [Charles Colson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-colson/) > [“The Bible- banned, burned, beloved. More widely read, more frequently attacked than any other book in history. Generations of intellectuals have attempted to discredit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-colson/the-bible-banned-burned-beloved-more-widely-read-more-frequently/) [Charles Colson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-colson/) > [In kindergarten that used to be my job, to tell them fairytales. I liked Hans Christian Andersen, and the Grimm fairy tales, all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-ford-coppola/in-kindergarten-that-used-to-be-my-job-to-tell-them-fairytales-i/) [Francis Ford Coppola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-ford-coppola/) > [A lot of my reading over the next few months will be the works of Hans Christian Andersen - I have been appointed an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-moore/a-lot-of-my-reading-over-the-next-few-months-will-be-the-works-of/) [Roger Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-moore/) > [I was already committed to a play back in New York about Hans Christian Andersen, where Colleen Dewhurst was going to play my mother.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-lloyd/i-was-already-committed-to-a-play-back-in-new-york-about-hans/) [Christopher Lloyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-lloyd/) > [My grandmother, Amalia Pia Emilia Vignola, whom I called Nonna, brought out the fairy tale in everything. She used to tuck me into bed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emilia-wickstead/my-grandmother-amalia-pia-emilia-vignola-whom-i-called-nonna-brought/) [Emilia Wickstead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emilia-wickstead/) > [I was born in the kingdom of Denmark, the birthplace of famous Danish fairytale writer, Hans Christian Andersen. His magical stories have traveled the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morten-andersen/i-was-born-in-the-kingdom-of-denmark-the-birthplace-of-famous-danish/) [Morten Andersen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morten-andersen/) > [I loved reading Grimm's fairy tales and Hans Christian Andersen, and I loved to dream about other worlds and other lives. Maybe that has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-bacall/i-loved-reading-grimm-s-fairy-tales-and-hans-christian-andersen-and-i/) [Lauren Bacall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-bacall/) > [“Creators of literary fairy tales from the 17th-century onward include writers whose works are still widely read today: Charles Perrault (17th-century France), Hans Christian…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terri-windling/creators-of-literary-fairy-tales-from-the-17th-century-onward-include/) [Terri Windling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terri-windling/) > [William Shakespeare was the most remarkable storyteller that the world has ever known. Homer told of adventure and men at war, Sophocles and Tolstoy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marchette-chute/william-shakespeare-was-the-most-remarkable-storyteller-that-the/) Marchette Chute > [I never liked Hans Christian Andersen because I knew he was always getting at me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-r-tolkien-2/i-never-liked-hans-christian-andersen-because-i-knew-he-was-always/) [J. R. R. Tolkien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-r-tolkien-2/) ## More by Eric Metaxas > [“If we believe miracles cannot happen today but happened to our distant ancestors, what we really seem to be saying is not that miracles…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-metaxas/if-we-believe-miracles-cannot-happen-today-but-happened-to-our/) [Eric Metaxas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-metaxas/) > [“(Bonhoeffer's) change was not an ungainly, embarrassing leap from which he would have to retreat slightly when he gained more maturity and perspective. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-metaxas/bonhoeffer-s-change-was-not-an-ungainly-embarrassing-leap-from-which/) [Eric Metaxas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-metaxas/) > [Religious liberty is the salt and light that has made us the great nation we are in a whole number of ways.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-metaxas/religious-liberty-is-the-salt-and-light-that-has-made-us-the-great/) [Eric Metaxas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-metaxas/) > [“But we know that true grace comes to us by costly sacrifice. And if God was willing to go to the cross and endure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-metaxas/but-we-know-that-true-grace-comes-to-us-by-costly-sacrifice-and-if/) [Eric Metaxas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-metaxas/) > [Created in the awesome image of God, men and women know that life has a meaning beyond 'eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-metaxas/created-in-the-awesome-image-of-god-men-and-women-know-that-life-has/) [Eric Metaxas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-metaxas/) > [I have no doubt, if people are really seeking the big questions, it will lead them to the Lord.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-metaxas/i-have-no-doubt-if-people-are-really-seeking-the-big-questions-it/) [Eric Metaxas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-metaxas/) > [“human beings were taken from the earth and don’t just consist of thin air and thoughts.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-metaxas/human-beings-were-taken-from-the-earth-and-don-t-just-consist-of-thin/) [Eric Metaxas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-metaxas/) > [“If you board the wrong train it is no use running along the corridor in the opposite direction. —DIETRICH BONHOEFFER”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-metaxas/if-you-board-the-wrong-train-it-is-no-use-running-along-the-corridor/) [Eric Metaxas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-metaxas/) > [“Some illustrations of the fine-tuning of our universe deal with the so-called four fundamental forces physicists talk about, and with which most laymen are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-metaxas/some-illustrations-of-the-fine-tuning-of-our-universe-deal-with-the/) [Eric Metaxas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-metaxas/) > [“Many years later, after Niemöller had been imprisoned for eight years in concentration camps as the personal prisoner of Adolf Hitler, he penned these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-metaxas/many-years-later-after-niem-ller-had-been-imprisoned-for-eight-years/) [Eric Metaxas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-metaxas/) > [Today, Wilberforce University welcomes many of America's poorest and most underserved populations and transforms their educational dreams into realities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-metaxas/today-wilberforce-university-welcomes-many-of-america-s-poorest-and/) [Eric Metaxas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-metaxas/) > [“Although I know full well and hear every day that many people think little of me and say that I only write little pamphlets…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-metaxas/although-i-know-full-well-and-hear-every-day-that-many-people-think/) [Eric Metaxas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-metaxas/) > [“The line between courageous faith and foolish idealism is, almost by definition, one angstrom wide.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-metaxas/the-line-between-courageous-faith-and-foolish-idealism-is-almost-by/) [Eric Metaxas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-metaxas/) > [Part of my life's thesis is that we live in a culture that has bought into the patently silly idea that there is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-metaxas/part-of-my-life-s-thesis-is-that-we-live-in-a-culture-that-has-bought/) [Eric Metaxas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-metaxas/) > [God designed humans to live in community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-metaxas/god-designed-humans-to-live-in-community/) [Eric Metaxas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-metaxas/) [Explore all 219 Eric Metaxas quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-metaxas/) ## More Ancient quotes > [“We ought to know the history of our ancient ancestors.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/we-ought-to-know-the-history-of-our-ancient-ancestors/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [In ancient times, those who wished to illuminate the world with virtue first brought order to their nations. Wishing to order well their nations,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/in-ancient-times-those-who-wished-to-illuminate-the-world-with-virtue/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [Ancient eyes had stared at me, filled with ancient grief. And something more. Something so alien and unexpected that I'd almost burst into tears.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-marie-moning/ancient-eyes-had-stared-at-me-filled-with-ancient-grief-and-something/) [Karen Marie Moning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-marie-moning/) > [“Whenever I think about ancient cultures nostalgia seizes me. Perhaps this is nothing but envy of the sweet slowness of the history of that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/whenever-i-think-about-ancient-cultures-nostalgia-seizes-me-perhaps/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [I don't know if I've come of age, but I'm certainly older now. I feel shrunken, as if there's a tiny ancient Oliver Tate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-dunthorne/i-don-t-know-if-i-ve-come-of-age-but-i-m-certainly-older-now-i-feel/) [Joe Dunthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-dunthorne/) > [Tentatively I stood a great lump of wood on the chopping block and bought the axe down on it. It flew into two perfect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-garner/tentatively-i-stood-a-great-lump-of-wood-on-the-chopping-block-and/) [Helen Garner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-garner/) > [Men must speak English who can write Sanskrit; they must speak a modern language who write, perchance, an ancient and universal one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/men-must-speak-english-who-can-write-sanskrit-they-must-speak-a/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [The Tao is the center of the universe, the good man's treasure, the bad man's refuge. Honors can be bought with fine words, respect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/the-tao-is-the-center-of-the-universe-the-good-man-s-treasure-the-bad/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [So too, monks, I saw the ancient path, the ancient road traveled by the Perfectly Enlightened Ones of the past. And what is that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gautama-buddha/so-too-monks-i-saw-the-ancient-path-the-ancient-road-traveled-by-the/) [Gautama Buddha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gautama-buddha/) > [Ancient societies had anthropomorphic gods: a huge pantheon expanding into centuries of dynastic drama; fathers and sons, martyred heroes, star-crossed lovers, the deaths of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hiddleston/ancient-societies-had-anthropomorphic-gods-a-huge-pantheon-expanding/) [Tom Hiddleston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hiddleston/) > [My life shall be free and broad and great, and I will not be the slave to the sense delights which chained my ancient…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-london/my-life-shall-be-free-and-broad-and-great-and-i-will-not-be-the-slave/) [Jack London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-london/) > [Those of us with this ancient compulsion to tell stories sometimes start with a single kernel of something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-p-jones/those-of-us-with-this-ancient-compulsion-to-tell-stories-sometimes/) [Edward P. Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-p-jones/) > [All the stories I have told you are finally as useless as all ancient knowledge is to man and to us. Its images and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-rice/all-the-stories-i-have-told-you-are-finally-as-useless-as-all-ancient/) [Anne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-rice/) > [So what if I'm ninety-three? So what if I'm ancient and cranky and my body's a wreck? If they're willing to accept me and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-gruen/so-what-if-i-m-ninety-three-so-what-if-i-m-ancient-and-cranky-and-my/) [Sara Gruen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-gruen/) > [Science has revealed a universe that is vast, ancient, violent, strange, and beautiful, a universe of almost infinite variety and possibility one in which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-mlodinow/science-has-revealed-a-universe-that-is-vast-ancient-violent-strange/) [Leonard Mlodinow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-mlodinow/) [Browse all 2,415 Ancient quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ancient/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Ever heard of anyone executed for distributing copies of Grimm's fairy tales? Imagine people trying to smuggle copies of Hans Christian Andersen's works into China? 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