Bowdler's Day - July 11

On this date in 1754 Thomas Bowdler was born. Thomas Bowdler was an English physician, so he was a fairly smart dude. He played a mean game of chess, and was probably ahead of his time in calling for prison reform. But what he's known for is rewriting literature that he felt was inappropriate for women and children. In particular, he made it his mission to write sanitized versions of the works of Shakespeare. This form of changing works of literature is named after him: bowdlerize.

Many people will take issue with these rewrites; I don't think I'm in favor of them myself. Still, it's an idea, and one that requires a certain amount of work and confidence to perform. And he did get a word named after himself. 

By Unknown author - see above, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=61676718


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