Re: Bowdler's Day (11 July)

Ross Clark <benlizro@ihug.co.nz> wrote:

On this day was born Thomas Bowdler (1754-1825).
Trained as a physician, but
became more famous for _The Family Shakespeare_ (1807)
(with a great deal of assistance from his sister Harriet).
A version of the plays "in which nothing is added to the original text;
but those words and expressions are omitted which cannot with propriety
be read aloud in a family."
This sometimes involved the omission of whole scenes whose content was
deemed un-family-friendly.
English thus acquired the verb "bowdlerize" (OED 1836-) meaning to
remove (supposedly) offensive material from a text.
 
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Bowdler
 
And on that note I declare a recess, an adjournment, a moratorium, an
interval, a holiday from this activity. I will be away from home, not
carrying Crystal's book with me, probably out of reach of Usenet
altogether. I plan to resume around September 1.
 

We understand you'll be doing stuff that cannot with propriety be discussed
here, but stay safe and on the safe side of the Law.