‘Charlie And The Chocolate Factory,’ ‘The Twits,’ and ‘The Witches’- all stories of your childhood are undergoing changes in their efforts to make the language of these books sanitized and gender-neutral. Years after publication, The Puffin Publishers are editing the works of Roald Dahl to remove offensive words.

There have been concerns about how Roald Dahl has written physical descriptions of these characters. Naturally, this curtailing of language hasn’t gone well with some. Author Salman Rushdie has outright condemned this decision of censorship, publically shaming the parties involved in his decision.

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Words Like ‘Fat’ And ‘Ugly’ Won’t Appear In Future Roald Dahl Editions

Roald Dahl’s books are undergoing editing to remove certain offensive words today. Puffin and the Roald Dahl Story Company collaborated with an organization called ‘Inclusive Minds.’ This organization was brought on board for a consultation to make sure the books could be made readable for all

Under the new changes, the character of Augustus Gloop from ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ will be “enormous” instead of “enormously fat.” In ‘The Twits’, descriptions have been changed from “ugly and beastly” to only “beastly.” The language used to describe women, such as calling them bald in ‘The Witches’ will no longer exist. Many of the author’s books will change to make his characters less grotesque.

Roald Dahl – 2001 authorized Puffin edition vs 2022 authorized Puffin edition.https://t.co/4dnBSjHEvT pic.twitter.com/Psfulj7Krk

— Incunabula (@incunabula) February 18, 2023

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Salman Rushdie Condems The Act Of Censorship

Prominent author Salman Rushdie has condemned this act of censorship. In his tweet, he shamed Puffin and the Roald Dahl Story Company for allowing this to happen, saying, “Roald Dahl was no angel but this is absurd censorship. Puffin Books and the Dahl estate should be ashamed.”

Roald Dahl was no angel but this is absurd censorship. Puffin Books and the Dahl estate should be ashamed. https://t.co/sdjMfBr7WW

— Salman Rushdie (@SalmanRushdie) February 18, 2023

Like another British counterpart Enid Blyton, Roald Dahl’s writing had overtly racist characteristics. He has also admitted to writing a character with Jewish stereotypes in mind. While many believe such changes signal the colonialization of the language, some people believe the changes made are logical and don’t change the author’s fundamental narrative.

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