Still Open all Hours

[barmpot]

I was really thinking about some of the dialogue is Steptoe there are some terms /phrases they use which today are not acceptable and are deemed offensive . I saw a snippet of a show on C4 , I think , where they are revisiting old shows and have various Z list celebs and journalists commenting on the content. A lot is shocking from a racist,sexist and religious perspective and that is what I was intimating for some of the shows I mentioned . Clearly I do not wish to repeat any examples for obvious reasons.

It generates a real argument because in the era that some of these shows were produced some of the terminology used was common place and sadly accepted by society at the time but now people quite rightly find it abhorrent . It must be a dilemma for UK Gold and those channels who broadcast this older content do they try to use clever editing the remove offensive content or do they simply not broadcast the shows .

Yes interesting dilemma: to edit out what was there to make it seem acceptable to now - is not that far removed from trying to change history, re-writing it. This was one of the tenets in 1984 by Eric Blair (writing as George Orwell) which was a characteristic of some communist controlled countries. We can not alter what was acceptable then and is not now. That would be untruthful. Many books are decried because they reflect the time they were written and culture has changed. Simple example - some of the Narnia stories have been criticised in recent years because some perceive C S Lewis as a misogynist (for the record he was not - ample proof) as his view of girls is different to now. They were a good reflection of the late 1940s/early 1950s when written but do not, and can not reflect 21st century life.

To change what was there just smacks, to me, of dishonesty. Perhaps we can not see them although most of the programmes mentioned are still available as DVDs.

Or a warning is given that they portray public mores of 50 years ago which some may find uncomfortable. Even if they are not shown I can remember a lot of the dialogue anyway!

 

[captain clutterbuck]

I again caught the tail end of a series of shows on C4 about revisiting TV of yesteryear and they have celebrities of various ethnic groups commenting on what they see. It was the 60's last night and the bit I saw was from the satirical show That Was The Week That Was . I missed the historical event that triggered their sketch but I imagine it was something to do with the Race Riots is America. It was a musical number with Millicent Martin dressed in an Uncle Sam costume and the song she sang started really innocently, until the lyrics dictated she used the N word extensively , at which point the celebrities jaws collectively hit the floor and they were actually speechless .

To compound it further the sketch was further embellished by an appearance of the Black and White Minstrels who sang and danced with Ms Martin . It was clearly TWTWTW satirical way of attacking what was going on in the US , the celebrities made great play that they could have used actors but not only did they choose to use the Minstrels but they themselves knew what the sketch was about and just took the gig.

The celebrities were aghast it was shocking to them and I imagine to the audience watching . I imagine when it was broadcast there would have been a reaction to it , although it was not mentioned in the clip, when it was broadcast but not to the level it would get now I can only imagine the headlines in the press.

 

[Marianna]

Or a warning is given that they portray public mores of 50 years ago which some may find uncomfortable. Even if they are not shown I can remember a lot of the dialogue anyway!

That would receive my full support. Maybe even word the warning to make clear that the language/behavior is unacceptable or illegal, so don't even think about trying it. Editing and complete suppression are both not only dishonest, but deprive readers/viewers of complete knowledge of past conditions.

Marianna

 

[wstol]

All I can say is that these modern celebrities who were so shocked are either easily offended, or totally unaware of how things used to be. Maybe they are too young or mollycoddled to have seen have seen how people used to talk or the phrases they used.

The point is there are a number of words now that are deemed totally taboo and must not be used, yet ONLY 50 years ago they were acceptable.

Somehow certain words have become offensive.

I can only imagine these words must somehow 'sound' a bit nasty to people, and over the years the words have 'become' nasty.

I think these words have been chanted in playgrounds and in the street, meant to upset those at the receiving end, and now the words themselves have become incredibly offensive.

No doubt some fairly inoffensive word today, will in 50 years, become totally offensive and unacceptable.

Look at the charity shop now known as Scope. Totally acceptable word. Once. That would have been a word that people 'labelled' other people. By that labelling, people became offended and the word then became unacceptable.

I think 'labelling' is the main cause of the words becoming offensive - which isn't surprising as no one wants to be called names - whatever they may be.


One day I think the words bald and bespectacled will become offensive, if they're not already.