Tuesday, July 24, 2012
Tintin
Interesting to note that Herges' attitude towards the Chinese only changes upon meeting a like-minded individual who happens to be Chinese. Would Herges' mindset towards the Chinese have stayed the same if he had not met Chang Chong-Chen? Would his portrayal of the Chinese in his comics taken on a whole other agenda? Chang gave him a new realism and understanding of the Chinese and played a monumental role in Herges' concepts and portrayals of the Chinese people in his comics. Michael Farr writes in his article 'Tintin, an imaginary hero' that upon meeting Chang his prejudices about the Chinese were "swept away". It goes to show how easy it is to make assumptions about other cultures and race without any full understanding of how their system or values function.
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I agree with your point. Had Herge met a Japanese national would his comics have reflected anti-Chinese tendencies? It seems that Herge was either ignorant or very easily impressed upon with regard to politics and race. I wonder how he may have represented a Conoglese person had he ever encountered and come to understand one?
ReplyDeleteFarr (1991) says that Herge was extremely political and bluntly critical of Japan's policies of the time but I wonder if these are Herge's views or Chang Chong-Chen's?
Yes, very valid argument. Is Chang Chong-Chen more involved in Herge's politcal agenda than we think. Maybe he brainwashed him, ha.
DeleteI know herge was renown for his research and historical accuracy, so one would think that he'd strive to portray each culture without being so presumtuous and fickle.
Interesting point you make, if herge had met a like-minded individual who was Japanese or Conoglese, would his political and racial viewpoint have been swayed in another direction? I guess we'll never know.....
I agree with some of the points raised in the comments above.
ReplyDeleteWe can only assume that Herge has been majorly influenced by Chang Chon-Chen considering how he has based a character on a real life acquaintance. It's very likely that he would over sympathize with the Chinese ideals if he was largely surrounded by the people and if they shared the same values. After all, a person's value is a tool to compare others with. It's likely that Herge simply clung with someone who strongly believed the same things he did.
And although Blue Lotus was pre-WW2, China and Japan has been relatively at each others' throats for many many years and Herge must have seen some sort of evidence that dictates so, much like shown in the Blue Lotus. Perhaps with the mixture of having close ties with the Chinese and some evidence Herge found for himself that showed the Japanese in a negative light, he has form a sort of aversion to one ethnic group over the other.