Wednesday, January 05, 2011

Should We Change History?

Web Poll -

Publishing company decides to change two epithets that appear hundreds of times in Tom Sawyer's "Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn." Should the wording be changed?

Yes. Those words should be changed to reflect current societal standards.  -  14 Votes

No. While I may not like the words, who are we to selectively edit past literature?  -  1309 Votes

Unsure / No opinion.  -  12 Votes

1335 Total Votes

http://www.examiner.com/homeschooling-in-st-louis/what-st-louis-residents-say-about-mark-twain-revised-classics

8 comments:

  1. Anonymous11:11 AM

    It is what it is. Leave it alone.

    You can not unwind the clock.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anonymous11:25 AM

    We’re turning into the old Soviet Union. People who fell into disfavor had their names removed from history books and were airbrushed out of photographs. Besides, is there anything any of us can say or do that isn’t going to offend some person or group? Some people are offended by other people drinking or playing cards. Are we going to let the lunatic fringe rule our country? It was tried, and failed with prohibition. There are people who object to a Korean War Memorial in San Diego because it consists of a giant cross and is situated, SHAME SHAME, on public land. There saying the suite involved in this one may go all the way to the Supreme Court of the U.S. And what about these lunatic fringe types that are protesting at the funerals of men and women that served their country honorably in Iraq and Afghanistan? Where and when do we draw the line?

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous3:51 PM

    History is History, you can't change it.

    You can only change the future.

    History is the gateway to the future.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Anonymous3:11 PM

    History is History.
    If we change it, it no longer is history.
    Changing the truth, makes it an untruth, or a lie.
    Change the future, but, leave History alone.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anonymous3:11 PM

    We learn from History, that you can't change History.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Anonymous5:18 PM

    Mr. George Santayana the Spanish born American philosopher said “Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it”. How do we learn from history if we change it to suite the times? And do we alter other great works of American literature just because someone is offended by it?

    ReplyDelete
  7. Anonymous7:54 AM

    Perhaps we should all follow this genius’s lead and start referring to Black people as slaves just to see how well it’s received.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Imagine what would happen should someone suggest that Shakespeare's text should be changed to reflect modern sensibilities.

    ReplyDelete