As many of you may have heard by now, the legendary works by famous British author Roald Dahl are being rewritten by publishers to remove language deemed offensive.
Dahl wrote books such as, “Charlie and The Chocolate Factory, Matilda, James and The Giant Peach, and Fantastic Mr. Fox.”
Some examples of books being rewritten include, “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” one of the main characters Augustus Gloop is not called “fat” anymore but instead described as enormous. The Oompa- Loompas are now called “small people” instead of “small men.”
“I think it’s a cool idea for old things to be rewritten by someone new. It gives a different perspective to the audience.” said Isabel Brightwell, a first year student at Sinclair, who majors in surgical technology had this to say.
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Another change that has been made in Dahl’s children’s books are the references to mother and father. Instead, they have been updated to “parents” or “family.” Other similar changes were made throughout the book. “Ladies and gentlemen” became “folks,” “boys and girls” became “children.” And in the famous book, “James and the Giant Peach,” there were characters called “cloud-men,” which has now been altered to “cloud people.” So why make these changes?
Publishers wanted to make sure that the new updated versions were gender neutral to fit in with this day in age and appeal to the new audiences.
“Well, in my opinion, I think how it was written before is fine. No need to change it. Also, I don’t think we need to push for everything to be labeled as “gender neutral.” I think it’s weird that people want to have this change. But, that is just my opinion.” said Jay Wilson, a criminal justice major.
“I feel like it’s just the natural course of things. It makes sense for books to be rewritten and updated like that to fit social standards and demands. All books throughout history have kind of done that, otherwise they become pointless and obsolete. So I wouldn’t say I’m against it or for it. More so that it makes a lot of sense and seems like the natural and right choice to make,”said Ethan Basye, an anthropology major.
Whether you are for or against Roald Dahl’s books being rewritten, publishers have made hundreds of changes to his legendary works for future generations to be able to read by removing language deemed offensive, creating more gender neutral terms, and other small changes to ensure the future of these books.
Sophia Hegyi
Reporter