Twain follow up

Thanks, I absolutely agree, what is it with people trying to change the past? I can't imagine why people want us so clean and white, because we aren't. The next thing you know they will outlaw all the cowboy and Indian movies.
 
Rana said:
Thanks, I absolutely agree, what is it with people trying to change the past? I can't imagine why people want us so clean and white, because we aren't. The next thing you know they will outlaw all the cowboy and Indian movies.
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I think you mean Cowboy and Native American movies.
 
Rana said:
Thanks, I absolutely agree, what is it with people trying to change the past? I can't imagine why people want us so clean and white, because we aren't. The next thing you know they will outlaw all the cowboy and Indian movies.
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I thought I read some schools have tried to prevent kids from playing Cowboys and Indians on the playground during recess.
 
cawacko said:
I thought I read some schools have tried to prevent kids from playing Cowboys and Indians on the playground during recess.
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It wouldn't shock me. It is after all politically incorrect and heaven forbid someone might have feelings hurt. After all, we know that in the real world, no one ever gets feelings hurt. So we should shield kids from everything bad until they are 18 and then let the world slam them upside the head with reality.
 
WinterBorn said:
Or should it be Cowpersons and Native Americans?

Or even Bovine Caregivers and Native Americans?
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I rather like Bovine Caregivers, it makes them seem so gentle with those very dumb animals. I have so many unfond memories of cows, I use to go and help my cousin on the farm.

SF might get mad we highjacked his thread, best return to the subject at hand.

Damn the politically correct in this instance!
 
Rana said:
I rather like Bovine Caregivers, it makes them seem so gentle with those very dumb animals. I have so many unfond memories of cows, I use to go and help my cousin on the farm.

SF might get mad we highjacked his thread, best return to the subject at hand.

Damn the politically correct in this instance!
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The thing is, you really haven't hijacked it. While we are all joking around, it is on the very same type of stupidity that some people want to do with Huck Finn.

Rather than discuss the past, discuss the lessons Twain presented, we try to sanitize it all because it 'might offend' someone. The focus became on a word rather than the message itself.
 
Superfreak said:
The thing is, you really haven't hijacked it. While we are all joking around, it is on the very same type of stupidity that some people want to do with Huck Finn.

Rather than discuss the past, discuss the lessons Twain presented, we try to sanitize it all because it 'might offend' someone. The focus became on a word rather than the message itself.
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Some years ago a church group in Tuscaloosa wanted to get Steinbeck's Of Mice & Men removed from the public school libraries because it contained 52 occurrances of "goddamn".

I always wondered how anyone could read that book and only get that a profanity was used 52 times.
 
Superfreak said:
The thing is, you really haven't hijacked it. While we are all joking around, it is on the very same type of stupidity that some people want to do with Huck Finn.

Rather than discuss the past, discuss the lessons Twain presented, we try to sanitize it all because it 'might offend' someone. The focus became on a word rather than the message itself.
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I bought the book "Politically Correct Bedtime Stories" years ago because I thought it was funny. Sadly at times I think it is becoming a reality.
 
leaningright said:
I bought the book "Politically Correct Bedtime Stories" years ago because I thought it was funny. Sadly at times I think it is becoming a reality.
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I remember Shelly Duvall and some others trying to sanitize the Grimm Fairy Tales! What a joke! People don't understand the messages in fairy tales because they have been taken out of their time.
 
WinterBorn said:
Some years ago a church group in Tuscaloosa wanted to get Steinbeck's Of Mice & Men removed from the public school libraries because it contained 52 occurrances of "goddamn".

I always wondered how anyone could read that book and only get that a profanity was used 52 times.
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I don't want to defend these folks but I will say that when one doesn't use curse words or hang around people who do, these words really seem to jump off the page, computer screen or TV at you. I remember hearing what a great movie Pulp Fiction was....I didn't get through 5 minutes of it before I turned it off and returned the tape. That said, I would never want to ban a book based on foul language.
 
leaningright said:
I don't want to defend these folks but I will say that when one doesn't use curse words or hang around people who do, these words really seem to jump off the page, computer screen or TV at you. I remember hearing what a great movie Pulp Fiction was....I didn't get through 5 minutes of it before I turned it off and returned the tape. That said, I would never want to ban a book based on foul language.
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It's good that you didn't keep going on "Pulp" - it only gets worse. One of my faves, though...
 
WinterBorn said:
Some years ago a church group in Tuscaloosa wanted to get Steinbeck's Of Mice & Men removed from the public school libraries because it contained 52 occurrances of "goddamn".

I always wondered how anyone could read that book and only get that a profanity was used 52 times.
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If people want to find a reason to bitch about something, they will always be able to find one. No one is perfect. No book is perfect as a result. Personal preference in how to word something or how to present an idea will always lead to differing opinions if presented to the populace as a whole.

It is how we react to those differing opinions that matters. Especially on hot button issues. If we try to bury those issues in an attempt to avoid discussion, that resolves nothing. It is in listening to the opposing views and discussing them rationally that we take the path Huck took. His journey from thinking Jim a piece of property to being his friend and equal (if not superior) due to his exposure to Jim is a direct result of the shared experiences and discussions they had.
 
leaningright said:
I don't want to defend these folks but I will say that when one doesn't use curse words or hang around people who do, these words really seem to jump off the page, computer screen or TV at you. I remember hearing what a great movie Pulp Fiction was....I didn't get through 5 minutes of it before I turned it off and returned the tape. That said, I would never want to ban a book based on foul language.
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Pulp fiction was a horrid movie. Be glad that the language made you turn it off.

That said, I do understand how such language can shock those who are not exposed to it often (or at all). But like you stated, it is not a reason to ban something. It is a reason to discuss.

Why did they feel the need to insert so many swear words into pulp fiction?

Why did Twain use 'nigger' so many times?

Does the removal of the words impact the message the author was trying to create?
 
Superfreak said:
Pulp fiction was a horrid movie. Be glad that the language made you turn it off.

That said, I do understand how such language can shock those who are not exposed to it often (or at all). But like you stated, it is not a reason to ban something. It is a reason to discuss.

Why did they feel the need to insert so many swear words into pulp fiction?

Why did Twain use 'nigger' so many times?

Does the removal of the words impact the message the author was trying to create?
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On that last question, I don't think it has to do so much with message, as with the author/artist trying to stay true to what they feel their characters would be saying at that moment.

Twain had his characters say "nigger" because that's what people said at that time. They swear so much in Pulp Fiction because they're gangsters & low lifes, for the most part, and it's likely true to how they really speak.
 
Superfreak said:
Pulp fiction was a horrid movie. Be glad that the language made you turn it off.

That said, I do understand how such language can shock those who are not exposed to it often (or at all). But like you stated, it is not a reason to ban something. It is a reason to discuss.

Why did they feel the need to insert so many swear words into pulp fiction?

Why did Twain use 'nigger' so many times?

Does the removal of the words impact the message the author was trying to create?
Click to expand...

On that last question, I don't think it has to do so much with message, as with the author/artist trying to stay true to what they feel their characters would be saying at that moment.

Twain had his characters say "nigger" because that's what people said at that time. They swear so much in Pulp Fiction because they're gangsters & low lifes, for the most part, and it's likely true to how they really speak.[/quote]

I would agree. That is how they talked at the time and why Twain used it. But take it away and input 'slave' instead. Does the story come off the same?

Pulp fiction is another example. Replace the swear words with 'gosh darn it' and 'fudge' and 'golly gee'. Does it detract from the movie to hear gangsters and low lifes talk like that?
 
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