UK vs. US/PoA Territorialism

[sistermagpie]

No: HPFGUIDX 170554

> Hexicon:
> What I don't understand is why "philosopher" must 
> become "sorcerer," "jumper" must become "sweater," but "spotted 
dick" 
> isn't changed!  That it's raisin pudding may be inferred from the 
> context, but I think that one gave nightmares to a generation of 
U.S. 
> kids <VBG>  
> 
> Hexicon, who as a youthful eccentricity used British spelling until 
> an "English" teacher started docking her grades for it.

Magpie:
Changes are always rather ridiculous and arbitrary. But that said, 
philosopher didn't have to "become" sorcerer. When the thought process 
was explained, it turned out it didn't have to do with American 
children being stupider than British children about philosophy or 
alchemy, or the idea that British parents could easily answer 
questions about philosopher stones where American parents couldn't. 
The US publishers wanted a title that had something about magic in it, 
and this was JKR's title, so it's quite possible she was the one who 
suggested changing the name of the stone to make it more magical-
sounding to a young child. If you compare the art on the book jackets 
of the two editions of PS, they also have different feels to them.

When changing jumpers to sweaters and changing the spelling the 
publishers are thinking about words American kids use, but the title 
just seemed to be a case of what they were looking for in a title 
(remembering that this was the first book and they had no reason to 
think it was be as popular as it became--I'm sure the idea of people 
buying both UK and US copies--much less copies in Latin--never entered 
their heads).

Also, it's not unheard of for a British publisher to make changes, I 
don't think. Susan Cooper had very funny stories about a British copy 
edtor who kept querying things in her books, trying to catch her out 
on Americanisms because she had moved to America. Most of The Dark is 
Rising books were published in the US first so Cooper's characters 
speak as accurately English (and Welsh), but the books use US spelling 
and American words for things like sweaters (though I don't know if he 
ever in his dialogue says the word). I would not be surprised if the 
British editors changed little words like that, though I'm not sure 
they did. However, I wouldn't accuse the US publishers of just 
altogether thinking kids were too stupid to learn other words--they 
did keep the Welsh, after all!

Jen:
But I understand
more clearly what you were saying now. Before I thought you were
saying Dumbledore didn't *really* trust Lupin or Sirius but now I
think you were talking about the...depth of trust, if that's the
right way to phrase it?

Magpie:
Yes--I was having trouble really putting my finger on it, but I love 
the pack metaphor. Instinctively, doesn't that seem like the case? The 
Marauders are such a pack with each other, and Snape and Hagrid so 
seem to have that mentality with Dumbledore. And it is funny to think 
of Snape also being threatened by Harry in that capacity. 

Of course, that also gets back to all the shades of meaning 
of "Dumbledore's Man." I once said I thought that fit Snape more than 
Harry, not because Snape was more committed to the cause, but that 
Snape seemed to really need stuff from Dumbledore that Harry doesn't. 
When Harry says he's DDM he means he's an independent person siding 
with Dumbledore and not, I think, the way Snape would mean it.

-m (who has only the British children's editions, which she prefers 
for the text but not for the covers)