The Adventures of Tintin in Fascism
Tintin first appeared in a far-right publication but gradually the stories were able to overcome its ultraconservative influence
You probably know the Tintin that Spielberg portrayed in film: the intrepid hero who searches for lost treasure, accompanied by the sailor, Captain Haddock, and his little dog, Milou. It was this Tintin that revolutionized European comics and made me love the simple drawing of the ligne claire of his creator, Hergé.
But in recent years, some of Tintin’s stories have been heavily criticized. The attacks are focused on the first adventures, created under the influence of Hergé’s mentor, Father Wallez. It was only over time that Tintin was able to free himself of Wallez’s ideology.
The political Tintin
Georges Remi, the creator of Tintin, signed his comics as Hergé. According to him, his childhood in Belgium was “mediocre” and “gray”. He was an exemplary student and Boy Scout, but his middle-class life made him miserable. When he started his professional career, he was able to work for a Belgian extreme right-wing Catholic publication, Le Vingtième Siècle. There he met the editor and priest, Norbert Wallez, a charismatic figure who showed more aptitude for political activism than…
