Reassessing the Concepts of Subordinate and Superior in Hergé’s The Adventures of Tintin

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 Department of French Language and Literature, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran

2 Department of French Language and Literature, Arak Branch, Islamic Azad University, Arak, Iran

Abstract

Despite great criticisms addressed to Hergé, the author of The Adventures of Tintin, regarding racial and ethnic biases, his works have maintained their popularity, even with groups that were directly or indirectly the subject of these biases.  The way that readers encounter The Adventures of Tintin is placed within the framework that in postcolonial theory is defined as the relationship between the subordinate and the superior. In this research, we assess different models that Hergé used to define the identity of subordinate groups. On the same basis, it is established that with making changes in the concepts of the subordinate and superior, and contrary to the expectations of the superior, subordinate groups are not merely the consumers of the cultural products of the powerful people. Consequently, by using the tools that have been produced by them, the subordinate influence the dominant groups and thus cause changes in their dialogues and perspectives.

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Research in Contemporary World Literature
Volume 28, Issue 1
August 2023
Pages 225-244

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