Quote:
Originally Posted by Quoth
Yes, some old books have some very offensive words. But so do some modern books and there are books I think wholly offensive and depraved but I wouldn't ban them. I'd not give them to anyone either. Some are highly acclaimed by some people.
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The offensiveness of words changes with time and audience.
The question is, was a word "very offensive" at the time it was written for the audience it was written for?
In a modern work, the answer is clearly yes, and was the author's intention.
In an older or historical work, the answer may well be no, in which case, IMO, changing it is the equivalent of translation.