So-called sensitivity readers have gone through Ian Fleming’s James Bond books, which are now being republished. Offensive words and phrases have been removed in the new editions.
The books are being republished in April in connection with the fact that it is 70 years since the first book “Casino Royal” was published in 1953.
The books will contain, among other things, the following warning:
“This book was written at a time when expressions and attitudes that can be considered offensive to readers in our time were common. A number of updates have been made in this edition, while staying as close as possible to the original text and the time period in which the action takes place,” writes the British newspaper The Daily Telegraph.
Removes content
Among the changes is the removal of words such as “negro” and a number of other descriptions of ethnicities.
Several sentences are removed or changed. In one of the books, Bond is at a strip club in New York. It is described as follows in the original edition: “Bond could hear the audience panting and grunting like pigs at the trough”.
In the new version, the sentence has been changed to “Bond could feel the electric vibe in the room”.
The Bond books have also been changed in the past. The author Ian Fleming, who died in 1964, gave permission during his lifetime for several sex scenes to be toned down for the American public.
Debate on Roald Dahl books
Just over a week ago, there was a big debate when the Roald Dahl books were to be purged of offensive language. The criticism caused the British publisher to turn around, so that they instead publish two versions – the original version and the revised one.
The changes have also garnered criticism in Norway. Kjersti Løken Stavrum, chairman of Norsk PEN, believes the changes send a dangerous signal.
– If you think that you should adjust the literature in line with today’s norms and values, then you have a big job ahead of you. And in this sense, it is really a full alarm. If you put on today’s glasses to look for things that might come across in earlier literature, you will find a lot, Stavrum told VG.
