Pooh always liked a little something at eleven o'clock in the morning, and he was very glad to see Rabbit getting out the plates and mugs; and when Rabbit said, "Honey or condensed milk with your bread?" he was so excited that he said, "Both," and then, so as not to seem greedy, he added, "But don't bother about the bread, please." And for a long time after than he said nothing...
Now what was THAT all about? Okay, you recognized the passage from "Winnie the Pooh" (If you didn't, ask your parents!), but what's it doing out of context here? Well, the thing is, this particular passage - or rather the Norwegian version of it - has caused quite a "storm in a honeyjar" here in Norway.
"Winnie the Pooh" (and "House at Pooh Corner") has been translated to Norwegian four times. The first two were long ago, and both they and their perpetrators are long forgotten. The third version (which is the one most adult Norwegians today remember) was the one that caused the aforementioned storm. [Occasionally, this was the first translation done by a man.] You see, this was an edited version. Those in the know could tell the difference after reading just one page, because the first thing that was missing was the dialog between Cristopher Robin and his father about the bear's name. [This was because his Norwegian name, Ole Brumm, would not work the same way. The modern edition puts the dialog in a footnote saying "If Ole's name had been {something else}, there would have been a little exchange here..." The bit about blowing away the bees near the end of the chapter was treated the same way.]
As you probably have guessed by now, the discussion about the menu is another part that suffered. In the version "everyone" knows, Rabbit just asks if Pooh wants honey or milk (!), he answers "Both please," and then he doesn't say anything for a long time (because he's eating, see?). He doesn't get a chance to turn down the bread because it isn't offered at all. [Another absurd result of the editing is that because Rabbit's first question is translated as "Would you like something to eat?" and the translator (presumably) thought kids wouldn't know what condensed milk is, he is in effect offering the bear milk to eat!]
So what? This little omission has caused a lot of misrepresentation of late. It started with some politician quoting the short version of Pooh's answer to show that he (in some context or other) wanted to have the cake and eat it. [Or as we say in Norway, get it both in a bag and a sack.] The idea caught on, and the media started referring to this particular attitude (wanting to h.t.c.a.e.i.) as "Winnie-the-Pooh politics" (Pooh-litics?) Yuk.
Some would say it is only appropriate for politicans to quote a Bear of Little Brain, but loyal Pooh fans did not agree with this particular misuse of the line, and tried to set the record straight. Unfortunately they went slightly overboard and claimed that Pooh NEVER SAID "Both please," which of course is just as wrong as the shortened line. He did say it, only he added a few small words that made a lot of difference....
Now THAT would be a stupid title for a game show!
