The legacy of a novel like "Pride and Prejudice" isn't solely defined by its intellectual or social influence. The immense and lasting joy it brings to readers across generations is a profound, often underrated, form of changing the world.
"Frankenstein" is foundational because it captures a crucial turning point in Western thought. It explores the shift from God as the sole creator to humans as creators, introducing anxieties about scientific overreach and moral responsibility that have defined technological discourse ever since.
The shift to a scientific worldview, exemplified by Darwin, wasn't just a triumphant march of progress. For many in the Victorian era, it created a painful void by removing the perceived "sucker of religion." This highlights that with every world-changing book that opens a new world, a previous worldview is lost.
World-changing ideas are often stifled not by direct threats, but by the creator's own internal barriers. The fear of social exclusion, of being "flamed on Twitter," or of hurting loved ones causes individuals to self-censor, anticipating external pressures before they even materialize.
Virginia Woolf’s "A Room of One's Own" shifted the conversation about women in literature from abstract potential to concrete necessities. She argued that financial independence and a private space are the fundamental prerequisites for creative work, a practical reality often ignored in high-minded literary discourse.
The popular perception of Galileo challenging religious dogma has a greater cultural impact than the specific, nuanced arguments in his actual writings. A book's power can derive from what people believe it represents, even if they've never read it or misunderstand its contents.
Despite being a "fundamentally reactionary" and anti-industrialization book, "Lord of the Rings" is heavily referenced by Silicon Valley leaders. This highlights a profound ideological disconnect where builders of a Mordor-like industrial future misread the text to see themselves as the pastoral, persecuted hobbits.