Was Enid Blyton Racist?

[anotheoldgit]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/booknews/9870065/Town-torn-over-celebrations-of-Enid-Blytons-racist-work.html

Many of her books depict an idyllic vision of rural England, those days before mass immigration, when our very culture was changed forever.

Providing certain things do not cause any physical harm or disadvantage to certain groups, either because of the colour of their skin, religion or sexuality, should certain children's stories be banned or altered to fit in with today's political correctness thinking?

It was said that the very bad Golliwogs were replaced with White Goblins, then is this not also racist against whites?

The golliwog owner of the Toytown garage was replaced by a ‘Mr Sparks’.

/// Golliwog appears as a total villain only in the notorious Here Comes Noddy Again, where a golly asks the hero with a bell on his hat to give him a lift into the dark dark wood - and then steals his car. ///

But then that could have been anybody.

[Ann]

//Or leave them as increasingly peculiar and inaccessible museum pieces//
Well I have a load of them in our loft, they are treasured as a precious part of my childhood in the 1950s and I will not even listen to people declaring that she was racist, they were gentle lovely books.

[Ann]

We studied "Typhoon and Youth" a classic by Joseph Conrad for our English Lit O level GCE and remembering back 50 years ago, I seem to think that was racist against the Chinese but nobody ever mentioned it then or since.

[andres]

If as some of you are suggesting that the Enid Blyton books are 'racist' Why then have they been turned into about 50,000 different languages? Noddy is one of the most popular children's books ever written.
The word racist was not openly used in the 1950s ,several other words were not used either-------sex,rape, mugging, binge drinking, the 'f' word ( say this word on the streets meant you could be carted off to the cells).
People back then were not always analysing and pulling people to barr like today.I am not saying things were perfect but most of us just went about our business without wanting to know everybody else's business.
Perhaps we should rewrite Enid Blyton in today's terminology as some of you would like. E.G
Noddy wiped the blood from the kitchen knife , jumped into the 'f 'ing car and drove off at 100 mph through the estate where the 20 mph limit signs had just been put up. ,'Sod the pigs, Let's have some fun'. Stopping on the way to pick Big Ears up . Have you got the gear Big Ears ? Christ -how much was it ? We'll have to mug another old git to get that much.And on and on and on .Is this what we would like our children reading today
I know which era I would prefer and it wouldn't be today.Leave Enid Blyton alone

[ludwig]

^ I was just getting into the story there andres. What happened next?

[andres]

Correction to my previous post ----50 different languages .
And Ludwig-----Noddy and Big Ears got high on the dope they bought and spent the rest on a couple of hookers. They lived unhappily for ever and ever.---

[Stargazer]

The golliwogs were called "Golly", "Woggy" and "***" and they waylaid Noddy and mugged him.

[douglas9401]

Racist, a witch and a space alien too. Where's my pitchfork and flaming brand?

[ludwig]

// Noddy and Big Ears got high on the dope they bought and spent the rest on a couple of hookers //

..and who can blame them? Good ending.

[zebo]

I can't believe how this has developed into an extreme adult analysis of a set of fairly weak children's books. My 7 year old grandaughter is enthralled by the Secret Seven books and the Famous Five books, she says they are exciting. I don't recall as a child myself being conscious of stereotypes, just of a good read. Surely we should judge from the perspective of children not adults?

[devilspawn]

Im sorry, I grew up with books such as Brer Rabbit and the Tar baby, along with all Enid Blyton books and not forgetting the age when there was only Mr Men books, no Little Miss ones as there is now.
I am neither racist nor sexist. Literature is supposed to take you to another place and let your own mind explore what is possible. The rest is up to you....

[askyourgran]

Well at least Noddy and Bigears can go to bed together again without anyone sniggering. They may even get married in a rewrite.
No-one ever thought anything wrong about the Blyton books. I still have some 'Fives go' books. They were spiffing adventures. Life was much nicer and easier then. No homophobia and sexism or racism, guns or knives.

[ludwig]

I love brer rabbit devilspawn.

[devilspawn]

Cant beat Brer Rabbit, but not many know about those books. Bit like Dr Seuss Green eggs n ham - more known about now we are a more "international" country

[horseshoes]

Funnily enough, our grand-daughter is staying tonight, and I have just read her a chapter of Enid Blyton's The Boy Next Door. She's eight and loves the story; she gets a chapter or two each night she stays. One of the children in the story said "Hark"! and Katie asked me what that meant. Lovely stories. I have all the Secret Seven and Naughtiest Girl books lined up for her!

[anotheoldgit]

/// I seem to think that was racist against the Chinese but nobody ever mentioned it then or since. ///

Why have there been no complaints regarding Fagin in Oliver Twist, was Dickens anti-Semitic?

[anotheoldgit]

askyourgran

/// Life was much nicer and easier then. No homophobia and sexism or racism, guns or knives. ///

It's a wonder this remark has got past the usual crew, that is those who refuse to believe that things were much better 'in those days'.

When I make such remarks they busy themselves delving into history books and Googling, so as to come up with rather vague comparisons, to unsuccessfully prove me wrong.

[chaptazbru]

^^Totally agree with your last para AOG.

[FredPuli43]

Indeed,no racism, sexism or homophobia back then. Blacks, women, and homosexuals knew their place in those days.

[bundleone]

Remember that the gollywog, noddy, big ears the china doll were all toys. not people, I don't recall any blyton books depicting black people as baddies, as in the famous five etc. (excuse lack of capitals)