The Martian--now sanatized for your children's protection

[lieu]

After 51 years of absence we can again now make a choice on ‘my favorite Martian’.

[Baker]

I was in highe school in the early seventies. In Spanish class we read a book in the original. *El Sombrero de Tres Picos. * And intro to the book said three short segments had been excised in this edition, to make it more suitable for young people.

First thing we did was go to the library to find what we were missing. I was rather disappointed that even though then I was rather sheltered, the unexcised version didn’t raise any eyebrows with me

[Bryan_Ekers]

@the OP's cite

“Imagine if you were stranded on Mars,” she said. “Do you think you’d say, ‘Goshdarnit’?”

I’d probably say “Oh, this isn’t a bit nice! This has made me very angry! Very angry, indeed!”

[Baron_Greenback]

@Sherrerd

Makes me wonder how many books have been re-published in “classroom editions” (as they’re calling this one). Tough thing to search, as publishers would have used a variety of phrases to describe the bowdlerized versions.

Many moons ago, the classroom edition of Macbeth we studied was slightly edited for content (the bit I mainly remember is one of the gatekeepers “increases the desire, but taketh away the performance” or similar). The teacher explained the difference between the text we were reading and the recording we were listening to. And she showed us the Polanski film version uncut, so y’know,the text was all that the school had enough copies of.

[Thudlow_Boink]

@Bryan_Ekers

I’d probably say “Oh, this isn’t a bit nice! This has made me very angry! Very angry, indeed!”

[Darren_Garrison]

@Baron_Greenback

Many moons ago, the classroom edition of Macbeth we studied was slightly edited for content (the bit I mainly remember is one of the gatekeepers “increases the desire, but taketh away the performance” or similar). The teacher explained the difference between the text we were reading and the recording we were listening to. And she showed us the Polanski film version uncut, so y’know,the text was all that the school had enough copies of.

That reminds me of when I was in high school (around 1990) the school was putting on a performance of Greece, and someone had lost their script (a commercially produced one, around the size of a Cliff’'s Notes book.) The thing was filled with hand-edits where the musical had been bowdlerized for the (again, high school) performance. Including every use of the word “geeze.”

[BlankSlate]

@carnivorousplant

When he repairs a pump without waiting for NASA, does Capcom not say to him, “You’re a dick!” ?

OK, fine.

5 Dicks
1 Dicking
1 Dick-all
Zero Cocks

[TimeWinder]

@BlankSlate

Just for fun I searched my Kindle copy:

Shit: 65 times
Fuck: (and variations) 57 times
Asshole: 6 times
Zero cunts

@BlankSlate

OK, fine.

5 Dicks
1 Dicking
1 Dick-all
Zero Cocks

And 1 “boobies,” including the emoji!

[carnivorousplant]

@Chronos

The book (or movie) does not contain any inappropriate language. When you’re the sole survivor stranded alone on a lifeless planet years away from the possibility of rescue, that sort of language is entirely appropriate. At most, you might want to preface the movie with a reminder that your students are not stranded on a lifeless planet, and so that language is not necessarily appropriate for them.

Someone upthread mentioned that the problem would be parents.
I have never known a parent to be make sense where their child is concerned, whether on a lifeless planet or a Principal’s office.

[Amateur_Barbarian]

@Darren_Garrison

That reminds me of when I was in high school (around 1990) the school was putting on a performance of Greece, and someone had lost their script (a commercially produced one, around the size of a Cliff’'s Notes book.) The thing was filled with hand-edits where the musical had been bowdlerized for the (again, high school) performance. Including every use of the word “geeze.”

Wow. It must have been all Greek to you.

[John_Mace]

@carnivorousplant

Someone upthread mentioned that the problem would be parents.
I have never known a parent to be make sense where their child is concerned, whether on a lifeless planet or a Principal’s office.

Oh, I’m certain that is it. If I were a school administrator wanting to show the movie, I wouldn’t chance it. It was rated Rated PG-13: Parents Strongly Cautioned – some material may be inappropriate for children under 13. Middle School kids are going to be 12 -15, right?

When I was in 7th grade, my father tried to give me shit when he saw a copy of To Kill a Mockingbird in my room. I had to tell him it was required reading for school (which it was).

[gaffa]

I don’t have a problem when the original is still available. I love the film Topsy-Turvy about Gilbert and Sullivan, and would love to show it to high school kids. But, for some reason, the director chose to insert a scene of Sir Arthur Sullivan cavorting with a couple of bare-breasted French prostitutes, and one of the actors using a completely gratuitous “fuck” giving the film an “R” rating. The sad part is DVDs and BluRays have the branching ability to deliver both the original rating and a Bowlderized version, yet I’ve never seen anyone do it.

[Jophiel]

@Chronos

The book (or movie) does not contain any inappropriate language. When you’re the sole survivor stranded alone on a lifeless planet years away from the possibility of rescue, that sort of language is entirely appropriate. At most, you might want to preface the movie with a reminder that your students are not stranded on a lifeless planet, and so that language is not necessarily appropriate for them.

Eh, it’s not inappropriate language, it’s potentially problematic language when using the book in class. I wouldn’t care if my son read it at that age but it was the author himself who approached his publisher and asked about putting out an edited ‘student’ version so, if he’s okay with the integrity of his work, then who am I to get offended?

[Tom_Tildrum]

I guess I’m a little surprised that this is noteworthy. Movies have been edited or dubbed for settings such as network television for ages.

[Dewey_Finn]

If a book such as this is adopted widely by schools, the author can expect a steady stream of revenues for a good long while. So it’s in the author’s interest to agree to minor changes if his book will be used in schools.

[eschereal]

@Richard_John_Marcej

This wouldn’t be the first time they did this.
After The King’s Speech won it’s Oscar, it was rereleased with the language “sanitized”.

In this day and age when we have multiple versions of dozens of movies released, as long as the original version is always available, I have no problem with this.

So today, kids can watch the “sanitized” version at school. They can enjoy and learn from it. When they get older they can watch the original version and enjoy it as well.

No harm, no foul.

“No harm, no foul”? What the hell? A significant element to the therapy has to do with overcoming the stammer with profanity. How do they scrub that and not turn the movie into pointless blather?

[Asuka]

The worst thing I ever read in terms of self-censorship was when Epic Rap Battles started to released sanitized versions of their online rap battles so they could be shown in schools.

I can’t imagine how embarrassing a teacher showing an Epic Rap Battle video in class would be, especially since you know they would think they’re the “Cool teacher” for doing it.

[BrotherCadfael]

It would be unfortunate to lose the phrase “science the shit out of this”.

[carnivorousplant]

@BrotherCadfael

It would be unfortunate to lose the phrase “science the shit out of this”.

Indeed.

[Nava]

@Bryan_Ekers

I’d probably say “Oh, this isn’t a bit nice! This has made me very angry! Very angry, indeed!”

Why am I picturing that in a John Oliver voice?