More recently, there was a literary uproar over the rewriting of classic books by Roald Dahl (1916–1990). New editions of the late Norwegian-Welsh writer’s works were revised to remove “controversial” material. Descriptors such as “ugly” and “black” were dropped, “excessively fat” became “gigantic”, and even occupations were changed from cashier to scientist in one case.
Dahl has sold over 300 million books globally, including translations into 63 languages. In 2021, Forbes ranked him the world’s top-earning deceased author. The edits sparked protests from many, from Salman Rushdie to Queen Consort Camilla. Following pushback, Dahl’s publisher Penguin Random House and the Roald Dahl Story Company (RDSC), which manages his literary property, issued statements that the rewriting was being halted and the texts returned to their “classic versions”. Will be done.
Dahl, who wrote primarily short stories, specialized in dark fantasy, which made him the darling of adults and children. The Witches, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Fantastic Mr. Fox are just some of the iconic examples of his children’s work. Many of his works have been adapted for screen and stage.
Dark content in itself is not a problem. Dark fairy tales and legends abound in most cultures. But Dahl’s language was reckless and politically incorrect by ‘woke’ 21st century standards. According to the RDSC working on the changes, ‘sensitive readers’ flagged some of their content.
Dahl isn’t the only popular author whose work has faced boulderization or discreet retraction. Most of the Enid Blyton and Billy Bunter school stories have fallen out of fashion because of their racist language and fat-shaming. Modern versions of classics such as Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn often omit the N-word, which Mark Twain used to describe people of color. The James Bond novels are now being rewritten to remove many ‘racist’ and ‘sexist’ references.
As with the Bond movie franchise, Dahl’s focus on making it politically correct (PC) is directly driven by commercial considerations. Netflix is betting big on turning ‘Dahlverse’ into a huge money-spinning franchise along the lines of Harry Potter and Marvel and DC Comics. Rumors suggest that Netflix is planning multiple series and that there could be video games in Dahl’s imagined world, as well as merchandise, etc.
Netflix paid approximately $686 million in 2021 to buy RDSC. While the exact contours of the deal were not disclosed, Netflix is reported to have committed another $1 billion or more to generate audio-visual content based on Dahl’s characters and their settings, including “animated and live action”. creating a unique universe in movies and TV”. , publishing, games, immersive experiences, live theater, consumer products and more,” according to the buyout announcement.
Now, Netflix apparently has strict editorial control over what’s included in its library. So why bother cleaning up the written word? The reasoning behind having PCs with Dahl’s literary works is as follows. Kids (and their parents) will watch the screen adaptation. They can then read Dahl’s stories, which in turn can bring them back for another round of watching videos, playing games, buying merchandise, or indulging in cosplay.
But if the stories contain non-PC content, the kids themselves, or more likely, their parents and teachers, might get upset. This would affect Dahlverse’s popularity and revenue. The benign feedback loop can turn into a vicious cycle of parents and teachers staying away from audio-visual material if books are deemed objectionable.
This fear is also the reason why Disney works hard to keep the Marvel Universe PC. Disney bought Marvel Entertainment in 2009 for $4 billion and has turned a handsome profit from the franchise with 30-odd movies and spinoffs. Given that the target audience is young and mostly underage, there is never any explicit nudity or sex, and any violence is performative rather than realistic. Similar ideas apply to the DC-verse and the Potterverse.
But there’s no end in sight to companies when they decide to go PC. DC faced backlash for casting Israeli actress Gal Gadot to play Wonder Woman. Like most Israelis, he has served in the country’s defense forces and thus incurred the wrath of the Palestinian side. JK Rowling has courted her fair share of controversy by saying ‘objectionable’ things about transgender people and alienating the LGBT community. Who knows who will be considered ‘sensitive’ next.
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