Posted by Pam Adams on August 13, 2009 at 15:23:58 user PamAdams.
In Reply to: Re: Ransome and Race posted by Andrew Craig-Bennett on August 12, 2009 at 22:49:52:
I too think it's an interesting discussion.
Per the books, my feeling is that Missee Lee is a problem book that can't really be fixed- it would require major rewriting of dialogue, etc. However, the small changes of a single- extremely offensive- word could be made without much difficulty. Example: Pete could describe the characters as 'black,' which would ring true for the modern reader, but not be in line with how black people were described at the time, so it would ring a false note historically. Alternatively, he could describe them as 'Negro' or (possibly) 'colored,' both terms in use at the time, and I feel, less offensive.