To think sexist phrases should be edited out of modern novels by well-known authors from well-known publishers?

[AnnaLP]

Just finished reading Frederick Forsyth's "The Kill List" (really enjoyed it) and at the end is a short story "The Veteran", which also seemed like a good read until about 30 pages in where 3 sexist comments pop up in the space of 2 pages:

"She blushed a fetching pink..."
"The pretty and bright WPC...."
".... was very bright and very pretty..."

They are just so unnecessary to the story - they add nothing of value and just demean the female characters they refer to. If I were an editor I would have just removed them - or AIBU?

Do you think that anamardoll had read much of The Magician's Nephew? Lewis confounds some of her musings: the boy is emotionally weaker, more caring, as are the other male characters, and the women are all strong, whether good or evil.

A theme he continues in many of the later books in the Narnia series.

But I wholly agree that the OP is not abut censorship but about PCness. I wonder where 50 Shades would sit within that mind set?

Do everyone a favour and stick to modern PC rubbish. Why do you think you have the right to alter classic novels from the past. Do you have any idea what censorship to that degree means, obviously not.

Did you miss that we were talking about Frederick Forsyth, Happ? Classic novel, really?

The Day of the Jackal is a classic for its genre.

Mind you, Enid Blyton has been severely dealt with, so maybe OP is right after all!

@OurBlanche: Enid Blyton has probably been censored because the names could make children think about sex.
Sexism, on the other hand, is completely fine.

Funnily enough, I read the books in a translated version and the only thing that confused me was why that one kid was sometimes called "Dick" and sometimes "Richard". English language is very confusing.

Oooooooooooooooh! I see, bad old Enid. Good job she isn't around today, boy would she get told off - or should that be girl woman?

I am still trying to figure out why being "very bright and very pretty" is now an insult

Ah! I looked it up in the Sexism Is Rife handbook: Pretty is a word only used for females and, erm, pretty things.

You'd never call a man or a brick shit house, pretty.

Therefore it is an insult!

OK?

How modern is a modern novel? Do you want living novelists to rewrite their work?

What about racist references?

What about characters making sexist/racist remarks because theya re that sort of person?

Shall we take the racism out of Othello and The Merchant of Venice and the sexism out of The Taming of the Shrew while we are about it?

Amazing. People used to roll their eyes at the way the Victorians edited Shakespeare to remove the smut and now all that moralistic censorship is starting again. And as if by coincidence, the excuse once again is 'protecting young women'. You couldn't make it up

Ah, ok, I thought it was the use of "she" which was dangerously sexist. All human beings should really be referred as "it", to prevent any gender discrimination.

1984 anyone?

Eh, no. YABU. Go and write a book yourself instead of trying to control the work of others.

It's stupid thinking like this that detracts from actual, real sexism.

OMG - I am so sorry Mrsjanedoe - I was on my phone and forgot to add a after "OK". That comes across as so rude, rather than quizzical and bemused!

Blanche will now take itself* outside and will give itself^ a stern telling off

YABU!

Seeking to ban the 'n' word from literature is controversial enough, but advocating removing the word 'pretty' and 'fetching' is one of the most ridiculous and superlatively ironically illiberal things I've ever heard!

North Korea eat your heart out!

OurBlanche

No offense taken at all, my post might have deserved sarcasm anyway.

still bemused by things that can cause offense nowadays