The Immoral Bard? - July 11, 2007

 

Thomas Bowdler was just too g-d d-mn sensitive for his own f---ing good. 

Bowdler got it into his head that Shakespeare was a regular Farrelly brother of the Elizabethan Age. He thought the plays of the Immortal Bard were just so full of s--- that they would upset sensitive readers, and so he purged the canon of every h-ll, d-mn, and f--- joke. (How the gore in Titus Andronicus survived remains a mystery.) 

Thomas shouldn't get all the blame, though. The actual pruning of the classic works was done by his sister Henrietta, though her role couldn't be revealed since nice ladies weren't supposed to even know those words. 

The Bowdlers may have been sensitive, but even they had limits: they wouldn't add anything to the plays; they just cut or substituted words. Editing Shakespeare may sound antiquated to modern ears -- Thomas was born 153 years ago today -- but his spirit survives in those who would limit what people can read, see, or listen to in the name of "protecting" them.

Suggested Sites..

Censoring Shakespeare - a history of attempts to ban the Bard. National Coalition Against Censorship - defending freedom of thought, inquiry, and expression. People for the American Way -  founded to build a democratic society that implements the ideals of freedom, equality, opportunity and justice for all. The Complete Works of William Shakespeare - unexpurgated, so you can make up your own d-mn mind. Wikipedia: Thomas Bowdler - uncensored biography, fit for any family audience.