Quote

 

Roald Dahl’s children’s books are being rewritten to remove language deemed offensive by the publisher Puffin.

Puffin has hired sensitivity readers to rewrite chunks of the author’s text to make sure the books “can continue to be enjoyed by all today”, resulting in extensive changes across Dahl’s work.

Edits have been made to descriptions of characters’ physical appearances. The word “fat” has been cut from every new edition of relevant books, while the word “ugly” has also been culled, the Daily Telegraph reported.

 

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/feb/18/roald-dahl-books-rewritten-to-remove-language-deemed-offensive

 

Any thoughts? Personally I think changing in someone else's work is very questionable. Put a disclaimer before perhaps, but not alter what someone else has written. It feels like a dangerous precedent to set, and who'll be the judge of what is considered "offensive" enough to change?

Agreed.

This does set a dangerous precedent 

 

It's like "Ten Little Niggers" by Agatha Christie Being Renamed "And then there was none" and even changing parts of the book, I understand that this word can be very offensive in the English Language but it's not exactly fair judging the writing of a Writer who happens to have been White, British and Who wrote that before WWII!

It's Stupid To Just Rewrite a work that isn't intended to offend someone, You can't treat all books like it "Mein Kampf"