Quote:
Originally Posted by HarryT
"Great Expectations". Dickens showed the manuscript to his friend Edward Bulwer-Lytton prior to publication, and he didn't like the ending at all, so Dickens changed it. The original ending was never published at the time.
Many modern editions (including the one I uploaded to the MR library) include the original ending as an appendix to the book.
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I did know the original ending was not published. Was an example of books being changed before publication, which may have nothing to do with the current discussion, but IMO it has.
My contention is that the original text and even the author's original story in older works, may have been altered significantly. Perhaps even the bible and Shakespeare's plays are not identical to the 'first edition'. In fact I am pretty sure they have been and the world hasn't ended.
Perhaps even Oscar Wilde has been censored/edited at some point in time.
Helen