Posted by Mike Dennis on July 31, 2009 at 06:54:10 user MTD.
In Reply to: Re: Thoughts on posted by Peter Ceresole on July 30, 2009 at 19:50:59:
I know this discussion has surfaced here a number of times, but I still think it is worth stating my view; I see the books as a moment in time, a snapshot of how life was then. Yes you could tidy the odd bits of language that we now, quite rightly, find offensive but then it wouldn't be the same. My late maternal grandmother born in the 1890s always referred to the chocolate brown colour as 'n***** brown'.
As for reading out loud to children, you either skilfully change it as some of you clearly do, of you have to explain - depends on the children I suppose.
To me the pleasure in reading AR as an adult is this moment in time factor, I know that it shows the world (or at least one bit of it) as it was. AR is a great writer, unfortunately because he wrote for children this is sometimes allowed to diminish this fact. Nobody suggest removing the anti-Semitism from Dickens, oh no, Dickens is a 'great writer' so his works are allowed to stand as written (other 'great writers' too - I'm not picking on Dickens it was just the first example that came to mind!)