Writing Blog Number 2

20241215 Rewriting Classics

Rewriting Classics

Looking back over comments and emails from older blog posts, I found this question:
What about copyright when rewriting a classic?

Well… it depends on the classic you’re rewriting. And how you’re rewriting it. And the characters you’re using…
         Yeah, it just depends.
         But, as a general rule… go for it!

Anything can be rewritten, so long as you do not use the same words. Obviously. Then it’s just plagiarism. It’s characters that create the issue. Even if you change a character’s name, if it was not in the original and was introduced later on by a different creator, and they can recognise it, then you can be in trouble. This is especially true if you rewrite a Disney story – they are litigious… and thieves, but that’s a story for a different day.
         So, for example, let’s say you want to rewrite Cinderella. Disney added the helpful mice and birds, so you can’t use them. However, the two step-sisters, the step-mother, Cinderella being used as a maid, the fairy godmother, the mice turned into horses, the glass slipper – that’s all from the Brothers Grimm, so you’re fine.
         How about Snow White? It always had a magic mirror, evil queen, poisoned apple and seven dwarves, so all good there. But do not think about naming the dwarves after personality traits – that’s a Disney thing.
         The Lion King? Well, that’s Hamlet with a happy ending, so do not do Hamlet with anthropomorphic animals because Disney will sue you into bankruptcy. Yes, Disney rewrote a classic and now claim it as their own.

So, original (Brothers Grimm, HC Anderson et al.) fairy tales are fair game to rewrite, Shakespeare is fair game. I will also say original versions of myths are also fair game. In fact, so long as you change names, any story not copyrighted ("20240508 What Does Copyright Cover?" ) is fair game. Courts have sided with originators of works if ideas and story beats are copied, so if a work is in copyright, don’t rewrite.

So, I guess the next question is: What is rewriting?
         It is taking the same or similar story beats as the original work, the same sort of characters going through the same or similar life events and changing the setting or time period. It must be stated that a parody is not covered here, as parody is defended under freedom rules and is seen as transgressive enough to not be liable for persecution. Disney have tried, and in some cases have won, but it does seem they are a law unto themselves. It is how Mel Brooks got away with parodying Star Wars with Spaceballs (that and the fact George Lucas was a fan).

I think it’s easiest to give some demonstrations of rewriting.
1) Maid Marian And Her Merry Men was a rewrite of the Robin Hood legend with Marian in charge instead of Robin.
2) My Fair Lady is an updated musical version of Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw.
3) Pretty Woman is also based on Pygmalion, though the love story takes it closer to the Greek myth than the play.
4) The musical Rent is based on the opera La Bohème by Puccini (with some changes that are stupid… I hate Rent).
5) Clueless is based on Emma by Jane Austen.
6) Brigid Jones’s Diary (book and film) is based on another Austen work – Pride And Prejudice. Come on – the male love interest in both is Mr Darcy!
7) Roxanne starring Steve Martin is based on the play Cyrano de Bergerac by Edmond Rostand.
8) Phantom Of The Paradise (a truly awful musical movie) is based on the Gaston Leroux novel Phantom Of The Opera.
9) The 1950s sci-fi film Forbidden Planet is a retelling of Shakespeare’s The Ttempest.
10) And we’ll finish with Robin And The 7 Hoods, a Rat Pack 1960s musical about Robin’s fight against Guy, set in the era of gangsters. The story beats and characters are so similar, but the setting is great.

Looking at those 10 retellings of some classic works and stories, you can see that the sky is the limit when it comes to what you can do with a story. Setting is whatever and wherever and whenever you want it to be. But the story itself and the characters are still recognisable to the audience.
         That last is important – the audience does need to be able to recognise that it comes from an older tale. I recently (well, in 2019 or so) read a book that was supposed to be a retelling of the Labours of Herakles myth, but I did not get that at all, either from the characters or from the things the character was forced to endure. Maybe in the author’s mind it started that way, but I am pretty good at recognising classical mythology, and this book did not do it, despite what was declared in its blurb.
         Now, one thing about a retelling that this brings up is that you can veer away from the original story if you wish. That is not a problem. The Lion King deviated from Hamlet. However, in my opinion, it should still be somewhat recognisable… and The Lion King was certainly that,
         So, if you are ever stuck for a story idea, maybe look at mythology, the classics, the folklore, the fairy-tales and see if a re-imagining can work for you. Give it a go! You never know.