Do the classics need to be changed/updated to make them more accesable, or is the beauty of the language timeless? BBC Radio 3 is introducing swearwords into its adaptation of Wuthering Heights to give the book a more contemporary feel. And this isn't the only change lately, how could we have missed the popularity of Pride & Predudice & zombies, admitedy this is a parody rather than the real thing. Movies have been doing this for years - is it time for book to take a turn? Personally I'd rather read the real thing, although it might be fun to read a "remake" after the genuine article just for fun.
A few fun suggestions from the article: Why not apply the same treatment to the first lines of other classics:
A Tale of Two Cities: "It was the best of times, it was the time when everything was totally, like, crap."
Ulysses: "Stately, porker Buck Mulligan came from the stairhead, bearing a bowl of cocaine on which a mirror and a razor blade lay crossed."
Anna Karenina: "Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is fucked up in its own way."
The Portrait of a Lady: "Under certain circumstances there are few hours in life more agreeable than the hour dedicated to the ceremony known as a top afternoon shag."
Sons and Lovers: "'The Arses' succeeded to 'Shit Hole Row'."
Moby Dick: "Who the fuck are you calling Ishmael, pal?"
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