Salman Rushdie Lashes Out At "Absurd Censorship" Of Roald Dahl Books

 

Salman Rushdie has joined other literary figures in criticising the "absurd censorship" of Roald Dahl's classic children's books by a British publisher. Puffin Books, a division of Penguin Random House, has revised certain sections of Dahl's books because the language was deemed offensive. Under a review of Dahl's classics, which include popular titles that were adapted to the screen such as ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ and ‘Matilda’, references to weight, mental health, violence, gender and race are to be rewritten or removed by so-called sensitivity readers to avoid causing offence. The changes have been made with the aim of ensuring that Dahl’s stories and characters continue to be enjoyed by all children today.

The Roald Dahl Story Company, which controls the rights to the books, has worked with Puffin to review the texts. While a character who is fat becomes 'enormous', references to small men have reportedly been changed to 'small people'. Rushdie took to Twitter to label the move as “absurd censorship”. Rushdie, who lost vision in one eye from a brutal stabbing attack last year while on stage in New York, has for years lived under the shadow of a fatwa issued by Iran’s former supreme leader Ayatollah Khomeini, calling on Muslims to assassinate the author over the allegedly “blasphemous” novel ‘The Satanic Verses’.

In response to a follow-up comment on Twitter, Rushdie added: “He [Dahl] was a self-confessed antisemite, with pronounced racist leanings, and he joined in the attack on me back in 1989… but thanks for telling me off for defending his work from the bowdlerising Sensitivity Police.”

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak also waded into the controversy, with his official spokesperson quoting one of Dahl’s famous works to say: “When it comes to our rich and varied literary heritage, the Prime Minister agrees with 'The BFG’ that we shouldn't gobblefunk around with words.'

English writer Philip Pullman, behind the ‘His Dark Materials’ fantasy trilogy, said books should be allowed to fade away rather than be rewritten. “Let him go out of print,” said Pullman.

The Roald Dahl Story Company said any edits are "small and carefully considered", working with publishers Puffin and Inclusive Minds, a collective working towards inclusion and accessibility within children's literature. The company has issued a statement to apologise for the lasting and understandable hurt caused by Roald Dahl's anti-semitic statements, which it says are "incomprehensible" and "stand in marked contrast to the man we knew and to the values at the heart of Roald Dahl's stories".