Roald Dahl’s books set to be rewritten to remove “offensive” language
The works of Roald Dahl are set to be rewritten to edit out any language deemed offensive. These reworked texts will be published by Puffin and available on the mass market.
Puffin have teamed up with a sensitive literacy advocacy group called Inclusive Minds to alter Dahl’s novels and remove any potentially problematic passages. This will impact texts such as Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Matilda, The Witches, James and the Giant Peach, and Fantastic Mr. Fox.
As one of the best-selling children’s authors of all time, this move by Puffin will have a strong reverberation within the publishing world. However, it has proved to be divisive as many commentators have criticised the move as revisionist folly while others have hailed it as progressive.
One of the cited edits in a report by The Telegraph shows that a description of Augustus Gloop will now be referred to as “enormous” in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory rather than “fat”. Furthermore, “ugly” has now also been edited out of The Twits so that merely “beastly” remains.
Sections of text are also being added to preface potentially problematic prose. In The Witches, the following segment has been added to explain wig-wearing among women: “There are plenty of other reasons why women might wear wigs and there is certainly nothing wrong with that.”
In a statement, the Roald Dahl Story Company said, “When publishing new print runs of books written years ago, it’s not unusual to review the language used alongside updating other details including a book’s cover and page layout.”
Adding: “Our guiding principle throughout has been to maintain the storylines, characters, and the irreverence and sharp-edged spirit of the original text. Any changes made have been small and carefully considered.”
