Welcome to Writers Talkback. If you are a new user, your account will have to be approved manually to prevent spam. Please bear with us in the meantime
Hi, I am writing some scenes set in 1951 in a Paris nightclub. The dialogue is based on actual people (all now dead) but needs to reflect the period, the setting and the feel of the era. My problem is this : the club (Vieux Colombier) was full of ex-pats, American soldiers who had not returned home, jazz and other musicians, a mixture of people. How do I frame the dialogue where some of the characters use casually racist terms which, today, would be frowned on? For instance, the club was well know for mixed race dancing. In France the term then used for a black man (personne de race noire) translates as a negro or a black. It would be impossible for a character of that age to say : "Who is that tall, handsome man of colour over there?" From research, I have no doubt that the character would say (without any racial slur intended) "Who is that handsome negro over there?" Attitude and times have, thankfully, moved on but in staying true to the period I am not sure what to do. Any advice?
Comments
Don't know if that helps at all.