Ian Flaming’s James Bond books were “revised” and updated to remove outdated racial terms.
James Bond will be back in Dr. No means No.” This was a joke line that an old T.V. had. The Critic was a cartoon that poked fun at the idea of James Bond returning in Dr. No means No. The James Bond franchise would change in politically correct times. As an old-school Bond fan, it seems that they have done this in a perfectly fitting way. It’s important to adapt to the times and the franchise has done so.
But altering past work to reflect current times is a much more difficult issue. The Roald Dahl estate was recently in the news after it was revealed that the books had been extensively rewritten to better reflect modern sensibilities. And now comes the news that Ian Fleming’s James Bond novels are being changed as well to remove outdated racial stereotyping and references.
To be sure, the changes are less extensive (or outrageous) than what happened with the Dahl novels. The Fleming books, unlike those, were always aimed at adults. This is a topic that remains largely unaffected, despite the fact that they were sexually explicit. Essentially, Pussy Galore remains Pussy Galore. Good or bad, they are recognized as an essential part of the text.
Instead, the changes almost totally relate to race, with the most heavily censored book being Fleming’s Live and Let Die, which featured a lot of black characters and was written in a dated, fairly racist way. The majority of the changes in other books involve obsolete racial terms. However, and here’s where it gets confusing, Bond’s racism towards Oddjob in Goldfinger has been left intact. This may be because the estate wants to keep the novels true. Bond is a man with certain prejudices and removing them from the books changes the character. This edition has been updated with a number of updates, while keeping as close to the original text and the period in which it was set as possible. This edition has had a number of updates, but it still maintains the original text and the period it was written.Indeed it’s a sticky situation. This seems excessive. The books are both products of their time in good as well as bad ways, and the latter is true for Bond’s views about race. These books are outdated. Those who have read them know that. Although the James Bond books may be a variety of things, they are timeless classics. So what’s the point in rewriting them? They’re beginning with books, but who knows what they’ll do next? They may also start to censor movies. Ian Fleming was known for his racist views. If we look back at those attitudes, wouldn’t we be fooling ourselves a little? These books are probably well-read and reflect outdated attitudes. As a twelve-year old, I read these books and noted the stereotypes. I dismissed them as Fleming’s relics of an era. These books should not be expected to keep up with the times. Are they overkill, or should the books be updated to reflect the times?
