Last month a controversy erupted with the publishers of Roald Dahl’s children’s books announce that new editions of the classic novels were to be released with the language modified for current sensibilities.

It was reported that the changes were guided by sensitivity readers from an organization called Inclusive Minds. Sensitivity readers are people from a community that helps authors and artists to walk the minefield of art that takes place or utilizes communities outside of the author’s personal experiences. Just as with editors sensitivity readers can be a tremendous boon to a work, helping to avoid serious, ignorant, or even hurtful mistakes, but not all sensitivity readers are equal, and some are not up for the tasks for which they have been engaged. This is even more exponentially true when dealing with collectives where individuals may be incentivized to find more and more examples of problematic language or scenes to ‘validate’ their own sensitivity.

Another group if sensitivity readers working for another publisher has recommended changes and deletions to the Bond franchise of novels written by Ian Fleming. Again, this is an attempt to bring these works into accordance with modern sensibilities. These, like Dahl’s writings, are notmodern works. The period is which they were written and published does not, in any manner, excuse their racism or their sexism.

There are those of the period that criticized these works but the works as they were written and published are historical artifacts of what was acceptable at that time. To change them is to lie about what was acceptable, to lie about the history of what became popular, wildly popular. These altered texts, done without the artists input, advice, or consent, are not the texts. They are adaptations fraudulently presented as the texts.

Roald Dahl has been dead for 33 years, and Ian Fleming for 59 years neither man profits from these changes and therein to my eyes lies the real trouble, what we have done to copyright.

The publishers and the estates of these men have the legal right to do whatever they wish with these novels and creations because we have lengthened copyright absurdly. Life of the author plus an additional 70 years means that James Bond doesn’t begin to fall into publics domain for another 11 years and it will be another 37 for Dahl’s works. If both these collections were in the public domain then people who believe in the alterations could produce their editions and other could continue to produce the original texts and both needs could be satisfied, but this insane extension of ownership three generations beyond their creators has distorted everything beyond reason.

I am not defending any of Dhal’s choices, actually I have never read those children’s novels, and I am revulsed that Bond as a character feels that rape has a ‘sweet tang.’ These works have serious issues but serious issues do not vanished by sweeping them out of sight.