Enid Blyton and the Brownies etc.

[EatsYummySprouts]

These are things which I grew up with and loved. Now the language Enid Blyton used is not acceptable to the woke ways, and the Brownies is name changing to the Embers (in Canada)
These are just two examples of ridiculous wokeness.
I am a very open person, and am open to the beliefs of all, and sexual identity of all. But honestly, all if these rules, and that people cannot decide for themselves any more if something is okay or not is completely bonkers. AIBU???

I probably wouldn’t change the language in EB’s books, but would consign them to the past - the attitudes represented are very out of date. It seems an odd thing to be all that bothered by, and what does ‘the woke ways’ even mean??

You can be sure of one thing – this isn't going to stop. I knew Enid Blyton would be next in the firing line. And who will follow? Jane Austen? Dickens? Virginia Woolf? The left are having the time of their lives. Eventually, certain books will be declared illegal altogether, and you'll be fined for owning a copy. It will start with controversial stuff like Gone with the Wind, but it won't end there. Think I'm exaggerating? Wait and see.

Absolute utter nonsense. No one is going to fine you for owning a book FFS. Don't be ridiculous.

What are brownies in Enid Blyton? Pixies? It's not like their golliwogs and a deliberate caricature of black people. They're fantasty creatures like elves in LOTR.

Books written for children years ago shouldn't be changed or re-written but new books should be written for the children of today if it bothers people so much. Many nursery rhymes and stories came about because of historical events e.g. Ring-a-ring-a-roses or other events. We cannot re-write history, what we can do is learn from history and aim to change what we consider was wrong then.
I enjoyed reading Enid Blyton books when I was young and could relate to some of the adventures that were written about and even liked Swallows and Amazons but children of today cannot, for obvious reasons do half of the things now because it simply isn't safe, but do we write stories about the dangers that children face today? About guns, murder, grand theft auto?
Books I read to my GCs now consist of the Wonky Donkey etc but will we be told we can't read that because he smells, has three legs, a dodgy eye etc?
PC correctness won't ever accceptable in a particular age or era because times do change, women were once never allowed an opinion (I know in some countries/regimes that is unchanged) and so it goes on. Racism is quite rightly being addressed but it works against everyone irrespective of colour or creed at some point depending whose perspective it is viewed from.
There is no complete answer to what has gone on in the past but it isn't possible to obliterate it all -it is part of our history, how we lived, how we changed, what wars were fought and how we have reached the point we are at today. If we go completely woke - how on earth do we explain why we changed x, y or z? You won't be able to because history books have been re-written to fabricate a story that will appease folk. It will not give them the information to make the informed choice of their own free will that something is acceptable or not compared to what happened historically in the past.

I feel very strongly about things changing and no longer using outdated terms. But I find changing books wrong.

I quite liked the name Brownies but if it means something else in Canada, then changing it wouldn't affect anyone's life except those who've found it upsetting.

Nothing "woke" (in the style of mumsnet to mean something I don't like) about this.

Thanks for this @GuidingSpirit.🦉

EB books have been edited for decades. I can remember seeing a 1970 version compared to a 1990s version. Personally think there are a lot better books... EB was just a prolific writer.

If Brownie is used a derogatory term, then it is right to change it. (Sparks and Embers sound quite cool).

Things evolve. Doesn't mean change is wrong.

😄👍

This. That's not the meaning of "woke" 😜

Well said.

But what if you liked these books as a child and want to pass on, but don't want the sexism, racism? I'd rather just read a book, rather than have to stop and keep pointing out how terrible people used to (and still can) be. Maybe have two versions so people who like the racism and sexism can read those too in that case. I don't see anything wrong with removing obvious negative slurs

If you never updated books or language we'd be reading texts like this: "Of Engelond, to Caunterbury they wende, The hooly blisful martir for to seke, That hem hath holpen whan that they were seeke."

My primary school ‘banned’ Enid Blyton books in the 1980s. You’ve only just twigged that she was a racist, classist misogynist? Catch yourself on fella.

The name change of brownies in Canada is specifically a Canadian issue as the word has been used as a slur for indigenous Canadians for many years. It was stopping girls from those communities joining guiding.

Oh gawd, they'll be going after the Chocolate Brownies next...

(that's the Fudgy, Cakey, Biscuity thing. )

Enid Blyton’s books are being/have been changed because they are so popular historically, most other children’s books of the time that don’t have the same high profile name attached to them, yet share the same racist and sexist content, have just been removed from sale. This is because good parents don’t want their children reading them and there aren’t enough parents who want to raise kids with racists views (like the OP) to make it financially worthwhile printing them.

OP, if you are under 40 you probably read edited versions of Blyton anyway, they were so bad it wasn’t just recent “wokeness “ that led to their censorship- it’s been going on for a long old time. Versions printed in the 1980s and 90s had edits.

If you think editing old books to remove unacceptable content yet still sell them is a new “woke” concept - perhaps look at the Christie book “and then there were none”- particularly the different names this book has had and the years it was changed. (Changed in 1960s then again in 1980s)

Most of us did read some of that text when we were at school - it's called getting an education. If you read it out loud it is understandable and you can get readers that have a modern gloss to explain archaic word usage etc.

They did that years ago!

This.

Hilarious

It's not a case of liking the racism and sexism though, more that they were inherent in much of Blyton's work.

I disagree with brushing out, removing or editing books. Cultural context is key - pretending things didn’t exist is a bizarre outlook and leads to such a narrow framed vision of the world and its history - and society’s development.

This is not to say that views expressed in books of earlier times should be lauded either.

I’m in my 50s and even as a child EB books didn’t reflect my world. I understood even then that attitudes in the 80s were different to those in EB books. I understood that the books were dealing with a different time. Children are able to understand these contexts.

Enid Blyton wrote about what she knew ,so all.the children in her books attended boarding ,school I guess it was normal.in her circle ,I don't disagree there is some very racist and sexist language used in the original books but I think.you have to.read them in the context.of the time it is written ,she clearly grew up in a very white ,privileged environment ,that is what she knew ,obviously times change and language changes ,but I think.it's good to be aware of language and attitudes that were acceptable in the past which are not acceptable.now.

It's good *