It seemed like a surefire hit. Over the past few years Disney has made box office gold with live action adaptations of its most famous cartoons. Why would a new version of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs - the fairytale that launched Disney onto the big screen in 1937 - be any different?

It was not to be. Snow White, which was released in the UK on Friday, is predicted to be a box office flop. Disney has downplayed the film's promotion. It even cancelled its lavish Leicester Square premiere.

The critics have been mercilessShowing no mercy.. In a one-star review, The Independent's Clarisse Loughrey writes that Disney has found a new formula: "Do the bare minimum to make a film, then simply slap a bunch of cutesy CGIComputer-generated imagery. animals all over it and hope no one notices." 

The most anger has been directed at a series of changes which aimed to remove outdated ideas from the story.

To name but a few, the title Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs has been shortened to avoid offending people with dwarfismThe condition of being of unusually short or small in size, especially on account of a genetic or medical condition.. And Snow White is no longer described as having "skin as white as snow". 

Gender roles are evened out. The dwarfs clean for Snow White rather than watching on as she works. There are seven new characters representing diverse backgrounds.

Kevin Maher from The Times calls this "a new low for cultural desecrationTreating a sacred place, object or belief without the respect it deserves.". Even the left-wingA range of beliefs that are the opposite of right-wing ideas. People on the political left usually believe in collective responsibility and the good of society. They often, though not always, support higher taxes and a more active, interventionist government. press is appalled. The Guardian's Peter Bradshaw writes: "This fudged, pseudo-progressiveApparently, but not actually, progressive (in a political sense). approach is so tiring you'll want to put your head in your hands."

All can agree that this film has come out at the worst possible time. Thanks to Donald Trump, diversity has become a dirty word. Many US companies are watering down their DEIDiversity, equity, and inclusion. policies. Disney is among them, as Forbes reports.¹

It is far from the first time that "wokeAwareness of injustice in society, particularly related to sexism and racism." changes to stories have caused controversy. In 2023 The Telegraph revealed that hundreds of changes had been made to new editions of Roald Dahl's popular children's novels. 

Words relating to gender, skin colour, mental health, weight and height were removed. Some of these changes were bizarre. The BFGA story by Roald Dahl about a big, friendly giant. no longer wore a "black" cloak while a group of "Cloud-Men" were renamed "Cloud-People." 

Both author Salman Rushdie and film director Stephen Spielberg called these changes "censorshipPreventing or stopping speech, writing or communication that is considered harmful or "inconvenient". ". Some thought this would lead to bland, badly written books, diminishing their literary quality.

Others worried about the precedentAn earlier event that is seen as an example or guide to be considered in later similar circumstances. set. If you can change Dahl to make him more woke, why could another editor not change them again to make them more offensive? What if someone with a sinister ideologySet of beliefs. started editing books to include secret messages? 

Yet others think this is an exaggeration. Texts have always been edited. The Victorian doctor Thomas Bowdler became famous for removing the rude parts from Shakespeare plays. Charles Dickens himself changed Oliver Twist to remove the most anti-semiticShowing hatred or prejudice towards Jewish people. passages after a reader complained.

Besides, fairytales like Snow White have always changed according to their tellers. Disney's edits are just part of this long tradition.

Is it wrong to change classic stories?  

Yes: Classic stories are classics in part because they reflect the society and values of their time. To change them to reflect our own values is to remove part of what makes them special and important.

No: It is important to learn about past prejudices and inequalities. By editing classics to remove them, we prevent readers from doing this which could have harmful effects in the long term.

Or... It depends on how well the changes are done. Both Disney and Roald Dahl's editors made clumsy alterations. They could have made better ones.

Merciless - Showing no mercy.

CGI - Computer-generated imagery.

Dwarfism - The condition of being of unusually short or small in size, especially on account of a genetic or medical condition.

Desecration - Treating a sacred place, object or belief without the respect it deserves.

Left-wing - A range of beliefs that are the opposite of right-wing ideas. People on the political left usually believe in collective responsibility and the good of society. They often, though not always, support higher taxes and a more active, interventionist government.

Pseudo-progressive - Apparently, but not actually, progressive (in a political sense).

DEI - Diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Woke - Awareness of injustice in society, particularly related to sexism and racism.

BFG - A story by Roald Dahl about a big, friendly giant.

Censorship - Preventing or stopping speech, writing or communication that is considered harmful or "inconvenient".

Precedent - An earlier event that is seen as an example or guide to be considered in later similar circumstances.

Ideology - Set of beliefs.

anti-Semitic - Showing hatred or prejudice towards Jewish people.