Novels by Agatha Christie edited to remove potentially offensive language

These updates come after the ones made to Roald Dahl and Ian Fleming books to remove offensive references to gender and race

By: Lifestyle Desk

New Delhi | March 28, 2023 11:08 AM IST

3 min read

Sensitivity readers have made the edits in all versions released since 2020. A comparatively recent phenomenon in publishing, they have gained widespread attention in the past two years. (Source: Wikimedia Commons)

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In a bid to remove racist references and potentially offensive language to suit modern sensibilities, many novels by Agatha Christie — christened the ‘Queen of Crime’ — have been modified. Among these are parts from Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple mysteries, written between 1920 and 1976, which have had passages reworked or removed in new editions published by HarperCollins to strip them of descriptions and references to ethnicity which might be considered demeaning, according to The Telegraph.

These updates come after the ones made to Roald Dahl and Ian Fleming books to remove offensive references to gender and race.

One such example can be found in her debut novel The Mysterious Affair at Styles, in which popular detective Poirot describes another character as “a Jew, of course”. (Source: Wikimedia Commons)

One such example can be found in her debut novel The Mysterious Affair at Styles, in which popular detective Poirot describes another character as “a Jew, of course”. The said portion has been completely removed from the new version. Similarly, the word “native” has been replaced with “local” in Christie’s short story collection Miss Marple’s Final Cases and Two Other Stories. In the same novel, a passage where a servant is referred to as “black” and “grinning” has been removed. The new version has edited out the reference to race and changed the action to simply “nodding”.

The publisher and Agatha Christie Ltd., however, have not commented on the issue yet.

ALSO READ | UK PM Rishi Sunak condemns ‘gobblefunk’ changes to Roald Dahl’s books

Previously too, Dahl’s publisher, Puffin, hired sensitivity readers to rewrite substantial parts of the books to make sure they “can continue to be enjoyed by all today”; however, they continue to print the original editions.

Offensive descriptions of characters’ physical appearances such as wothe rds “fat” and “ugly”, as well as antisemitic slurs were removed. Gender-neutral terms were also added with the aim to improve diversity.

Fleming’s James Bond series will also be released with racial and sexist references edited out. They will also contain a disclaimer: “This book was written at a time when terms and attitudes which might be considered offensive by modern readers were commonplace.”

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