Having earlier today reviewed a movie that dealt with Nazis and the Holocaust, it seemed fitting to publish this particular video about one of my favorite childhood cartoon characters, Tintin.
Tintin was the brainchild of Hergé, and came to be very popular. There are dozens of comic books (as in actual books) which were originally in the French language, but which have become so popular that they have been translated to many languages now. Indeed, Tintin was hugely popular and successful, and continues to be to this day.
That said, however, it is not without controversy. There have been criticisms that Tintin sometimes seemed to promote racist stereotypes. This was particularly relevant regarding the book when he visits the Congo in Africa, as well as how the Japanese were portrayed in other books.
Yet perhaps more alarming was that Hergé was accused of using Tintin almost as supportive of Nazism in Germany.
Now, this is highly debatable. While Hergé's apparent history, and even collaboration, to some degree during the German occupation of Belgium is nothing to be proud of, it seems relatively benign compared to the collaboration of many others, who were involved in identifying Jews and putting them on trains, or obvious and clear antisemitic propaganda. This simply is not entirely the case with Hergé, although there is just enough there to be more than a little troubling.
I still like Tintin, and have fond memories of reading the comic books from my childhood. Hell, I still enjoy perusing those books and seeing some of the cartoons, which felt like a window to the wider world back when I was a kid.
Nevertheless, history is important, too. This is reality, and it seems hardly kind of the apparent history of Hergé, personally, or of his cartoon, Tintin, during the German occupation.
Take a look at the video below and see what you think. And please feel free as always to share your thoughts here.
Tintin in the Land of the Nazis - Was Hergé A Wartime Collaborator?
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