Insults and Racism

As I prepared to read “Indian Camp” by Ernest Hemingway, a line in the story forced me to consider my philosophy on modifying a renowned writer’s content to suit modern sensibilities. The words were “squaw bitch.”

Each of these words is problematic in a different way. One is racist, and the other is sexually derogatory. However, they are uttered by a character for whom, in context, the phrase makes sense. So, as it was important to the story, I left it as written. Listen to the story, and I believe you will agree that the phrase uttered by this character had to be used.

However, there have been other times when I removed or changed words that could be seen as offensive and had no impact on the story.

The most recent example was the use of the term “negro” in “The Willow Walk” by Sinclair Lewis. When the story was written, “negro” was commonly used to refer to African Americans. Today, it personallyt feels insulting, given its historical baggage.

Should I remove the word? What was the context? How was it used? Within the story, it was describing an old man who worked overnight at a garage. In context, it felt racially demeaning. Would the author have stated that an old “white” man worked at the garage? No. It would have just been an old man.

The word did nothing to enhance the story. I removed it.

Given the horribly racist attitudes that pervaded society one hundred or more years ago – and are still far too prevalent today – I know I will face this dilemma many more times. I hope you find my solution reasonable. To those who still find some of the language insulting, I apologize. It is not my intent. I’m trying to be reasonably true to the author and to my listeners.