Political Correctness gone mad

It looks like political correctness has gone bonkers in the world today. It is no longer civil to speak your mind, it seems. Everything you say and write must not hurt or upset someone else.

The latest to have a politically correct makeover are the famous and popular Famous Five and Secret Seven books by Enid Blyton.

The characters in these books will now have their names changed, behaviour altered and words mellowed.

So, the latest published version of Magic Faraway Tree book will have:

• Sexism toned down with girls and boys expected to share chores
• Characters renamed from Fanny and Dick to Frannie and Rick
• Dame Slap becomes Dame Snap, and now scolds children rather than smacking them
• Bessie, a black character with a name associated with slavery, is now a white girl called Beth
• Changes in the language include ‘hey’ replacing ‘I say’, ‘queer’ is ‘odd’ — and ‘biscuits’ are called ‘cookies’ in an attempt to appeal to US readers

I think that in certain circumstances it is okay to be PC, especially in a world today where everyone is equal and it is vital to treat every person from every community, race and religion as the same.

However when it comes to literature, I think the original versions should be left unaltered. If not for anything else, it will surely allow the generation today to know and learn about the mindset of the people at the time the books were written.

For me, I grew up reading these books and I am glad I discovered about sexism and racism in these books and I am sure it didn’t alter my perception of people and society today.