 Familiar fantasy
Similarities in Hergé's "Land of the Black Pelican"
and the "Land of the Peacock Throne"
By Darius Kadivar
September 21, 2003
The Iranian
Hergé (1907-1983),
one of the most original artists
of the 20th century, was inspired by the Orient in creating several
of his books, including Crab
with the Golden Claws , Cigars
of the Pharaoh and especially in the Land
of the Black Gold. His adventures, translated into Persian
as Magerahayeh
Tintin, were one of the most popular children's books
shows of our time.
Hergé's work has often been reduced by his
critics as childish or too moralistic, They do have a point but it
cannot explain
why the
Tintin adventures have
been translated into more than 40 languages. For more than half
a century it has been an international library success, especially
after the Second
World War. With his impeccable style and superb use of color, Hergé certainly
influenced several generations worldwide to shape their visual imagination.
The ever perfectionist artist, created
Tintin in 1929 and produced 24 volumes in all.
As a child growing
up in Iran I discovered Tintin in the Cigars
of the Pharaoh , the apparent comic illustrations
of the characters was supported by a strong plot and contrary to
the look of the characters, the settings, details and costumes were
quite
realistic.
My
favorite albums were the sea adventures The
Secret of the Unicorn and Red
Rackhams Treasure.
The stories now remind me of the great
times my brother, sister and I had on the grounds of Namazi
Hospital
in Shiraz,
resting
on the green grass surrounding the pool, snacking on watermelons
and cheese,
Fanta soda or Ab-Ali yogurt drink
One album in particular was quite fascinating. King
Ottokar's Sceptre is about a fantasy kingdom which combines
both tradition and modernity, ruled by a benevolent king. As
a Belgian,
Hergé was naturally
attached to the monarchy, nevertheless, the Belgian monarchy
was a fragile one due to the linguistic divisions between the
Flamands
(more Dutch) and the Whalons (closer to French).
Former King Bedouin
of Belgium played a key role in uniting his people
after the
Second World War when the country was divided between those in
favor of the monarchy
and those who wanted a republic and did not accept the new king's
father Leopold III, because of his collaboration with the German
occupying forces. (See Belgian
History)
While taking an oath on the constitution in front of parliament,
King Bedouin was whistled at by some deputies who did not accept
him as the new monarch. Nevertheless Belgium was to become a constitutional
kingdom again and Bedouin became a popular king
in the years that followed.
Hergé was
also to become a close friend of King
Bedouin and Queen Fabiola and gave a special album
dedicated to the monarchy in King Ottokar's Sceptre.
Tintin is certainly
much more elaborated than other cartoon
books such as Goscinny (credited for the dialogue) and Uderzo (credited
for the drawings) or Asterix which are fun (see Ancestor
in Paris). But since Goscinny's death
the new books have lost quality and depth
in their
dialogue.
Hergé's description of human nature and its shortcomings,
have led some critics to accuse him of being intolerant, racist
or colonialist (Tintin
in Congo), dictatorial minded (Tintin and the Picaros, King
Ottokar's Sceptre). In these Tintin only comes across
as the only faultless person. Those
who have read Tintin carefully will certainly see the exaggeration
of these allegations.
Hergé's work was certainly
influenced by the his time, and some of his prejudices
do come across
but never
in a cruel
way. And it is no coincidence that nearly everyone and in every
culture can find anologies in his work, including even filmakers
like Phillipe
De Broca
in L'Homme de Rio, aka The
Man from Rio, with Jean Paul Belmondo or Steven
Spielberg whose Indiana
Jones adventures are inspired by those of Tintin. (Rumours
are that Spielberg's a great fan of Hergé and will be adapting
Tintin for the big screen.)
Hergé's Royal Tintin adventures
takes place in the fictitious Kingdom of Syldavia ruled
by the benevolent King Muskar XII, whose legitimacy
rests upon his possession of the Royal Sceptre
of his ancestor, which the king
must always hold on official occasions each year. Hergé's
genius in creating his books was that he never traveled or left
his native country. Since its first publication in 1938, King
Ottokar's Sceptre was
reedited a number of times in the 60's and 70's.
It is precisely
because of combining both tradition and modernity, that Syldavian
King Muskar XI's "Kingdom
of the Black Pelican" ressembles that
of the Pahlavi era's
in the "Land
of the Peacock Throne".
A court filled
with intrigue and conspiracies, masterminded
by Mützler
(a recurrent Tintin villian, he also appears in Explorers on
the Moon) head of the "Iron Guard" (see Immortal
Guards, and generals) ,
tries with the help of the neighbouring Republic of Borduria,
described as a "Stalin-like society", to topple the
King by stealing the "Ottokar
Sceptre".
Mützler's character and intentions
also are quite similar to those of the suave, cunning-looking General
Teymour Bakhtiar, former head of the SAVAK secret police, who
wanted to topple the Shah with the help of neighbouring
Iraq. He could
also pass
for one
of the former Shah's close friends, General Fardoust who betrayed
him in the last years.
Hergé's fanstasy
kingdom is of course described in ideal terms. We are not really
introduced to
the way things are governed in the country. The king
appears as a good person, a little in the clouds at first, but
once he gets to know Tintin, both try to help each other find the
sceptre.
The
people of the
kingdom come across as happy in their rural villiages or urban
cities, amidst political intrigues to which most of the population
remain indifferent.
It should be noted that Hergé appears
as himself in many of his books, a little like Hitchcock,
and it is the case in King
Ottokar's Sceptre in
which he can be seen in crowd greeting Tintin in the coronation
hall. Interestingly Iran's capital is mentioned in Hergé's Flight
714 to Sydney, where after landing in Djakarta, Tintin and
his friends meet an Estonian pilot who has just
flown in from Tehran (See Pic).
Although Tintin was hardly popular in the US, which had its share
of super heroes from Batman to Superman to name just
a couple, Hergé's adventures had
boy's scout approach to life. Its publicity slogan in French
says "Tintin plait aux Jeunes
de 7 à 77
ans..." ("Tintin
can be read from the age of 7 to 77...")
In recent years
an Iranian Marjane Satrapi (also see Haji
Mosawwar al-Molk) has made the headlines with the overwhelming
success of her comic series Persepolis,
based on her childhood in pre- and post-revolutionary Iran.
She
has published her third book which is about her personal
experiences in an Austrian
religious school in 1984, when she was in her teens after trying
to cope with a new culture. Satrapi's work was praised at the "Bande
Dessiné Festival
d'Angoulem".
For Iranian readers who have gone through similar experiences,
Satrapi's books are nnevertheless
often funny, sarcastic
and more revealing for those in West, especially
in her latest Persepolis
Tome III. Her style sometimes reminds one of Hergé's Ligne
Claire, with underlining social and political influences
very much like the Belgian cartoonist. For instance Tintin
in the Land of the Soviets (1929), and Tintin
in America (1932) are clearly influenced by the Russian Revolution
and the American Mafia.
Hérgé's work has earned him the undisputed
title of "Father of Modern European Comics".
Even serious scholars have been pondering on the
social, artistic and historical importance of his work today. He
is to comic
strip what Andy Warhol was to Pop art.
Hérgé may in fact be the subject of
too much scrutiny and analysis for a series of comic books meant
essentially to entertain, rather than educate.
But their
is some truth
in those
assumptions. Hergé's entire
world was concentrated on creating the comic hero's adventures
in different parts of the world
-- be it real or fictitious -- based on meticulous research of
customs, events and history
of his time.
Tintin was the first to land on the moon, discover
the underwater
world and its hidden treasures, explore
the Antartic, fight Communism, condemn
South American dictatorships and denounce revolutionary
abuses or false promises. Tintin
and the Picaros in 1976 was to be Hergé's last
published adventure, in which he forsees the oil crisis and possible
consenquences in The Land of the Black Gold.
Hergé was not a visionary nor did he claim to be. But he
was certainly one of the artists of the 20th century to have imposed
a very unique style,
colorful characters and unforgettable stories in which anyone
can find inspiration. His books continue to attract new readers
from all
continents. that is probably what makes Tintin
universal.
>>> The official
Tintin website
>>> Also
a very cool website in Farsi
on Tintin
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