# Should kids still read Tintin? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 3, 2016, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-kids-still-read-tintin/756406 "2016-06-03T18:02:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2016, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-kids-still-read-tintin/756406/21 "2016-06-04T15:20:29Z")
> [@thelurkinghorror](#): > > They do have a somewhat English vibe at least in translation. E.g. Marlinspike Hall sounds very English, but it almost certainly was called something else in French (apparently Moulinsart). It’s never explicit where they live. IIRC one of the English-translation Tintin books explicitly gives Marlinspike’s address as “England.” ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2016, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-kids-still-read-tintin/756406/22 "2016-06-04T15:21:38Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > Some people need to grow thicker skins and quit whining about things they can never change. Care to explain or expand on this? Who is “whining”? What can never be changed? What course of action do you recommend to the OP? ---
**Author:** ![tim314](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim314/32/3468_2.png) [@tim314](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tim314)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2016, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-kids-still-read-tintin/756406/23 "2016-06-04T15:44:13Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > Some people need to grow thicker skins and quit whining about things they can never change. I am interpreting your comment as “people need to quit pointing out racial bias and just pretend it doesn’t exist.” If that isn’t what you meant, please clarify. If that is what you meant, I’d say that attitude is a big part of the _reason_ things don’t change. ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2016, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-kids-still-read-tintin/756406/24 "2016-06-04T21:48:14Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > Nope. Tintin and most of his regular supporting cast are all Belgians, living in Belgium. Yes…but **thelurkinghorror** said “Americans,” and I think they’re much more like British policemen than any American stereotype. (If Belgian police actually dressed like that…was it in imitation of British police? Who did it first?) And…you did say “most.” There are so many wonderful international characters: Castafiore, Da Figueira, Alcazar, the Maharaja of Gaipajama… Most of them are treated with respect for their nationality. Castafiore is lampooned severely, but she is never shown as a cartoonish or stereotypical Italian. (Okay, Alcazar, some.) This, perhaps, is the best part of Tintin’s lasting relevance: the depiction of good-spirited internationalism and world travel. He goes to far-off lands and makes friends. Once Hergé really hit his stride, Tintin becomes one of the best role-models kids could want in clever visual fiction. ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2016, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-kids-still-read-tintin/756406/25 "2016-06-04T21:51:45Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > IIRC one of the English-translation Tintin books explicitly gives Marlinspike’s address as “England.” True…but is that only in the translation, or was it in the original? I know a guy who translates European Disney comics for the U.S. market. Donald Duck is often seen hopping into his unique red jalopy and driving…to Paris! My friend has to stick in silly explanatory tags. “After a short trans-Atlantic flight…” To the Dutch writers, it seems perfectly reasonable that one might just drive over to Paris! ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2016, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-kids-still-read-tintin/756406/26 "2016-06-04T22:07:31Z")
> [@Trinopus](#): > > Yes…but **thelurkinghorror** said “Americans,” and I think they’re much more like British policemen than any American stereotype. > > (If Belgian police actually dressed like that…was it in imitation of British police? Who did it first?) > > And…you did say “most.” There are so many wonderful international characters: Castafiore, Da Figueira, Alcazar, the Maharaja of Gaipajama… Most of them are treated with respect for their nationality. Castafiore is lampooned severely, but she is never shown as a cartoonish or stereotypical Italian. (Okay, Alcazar, some.) > > This, perhaps, is the best part of Tintin’s lasting relevance: the depiction of good-spirited internationalism and world travel. He goes to far-off lands and makes friends. Once Hergé really hit his stride, Tintin becomes one of the best role-models kids could want in clever visual fiction. I said Ugly Americans, which is a specific term withit it’s own Wikipedia page and everything. I wasn’t suggesting that Tintin is portrayed ad American. Ugly Briton is not a specific term, even if some British tourists fit the same role. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2016, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-kids-still-read-tintin/756406/27 "2016-06-04T22:43:13Z")
> [@Trinopus](#): > > True…but is that only in the translation, or was it in the original? [Wikipedia says](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marlinspike_Hall#Location), bolding and ellipses mine: “Marlinspike Hall is **located in Belgium**. The original English language translators of the Tintin books caused some confusion to English speaking readers by giving the address of Marlinspike Hall as “ **Marlinshire, England** ” in The Secret of the Unicorn. However details such as traffic travelling on the right hand side of the road and the appearance of the Marlinspike police (who wear the black and red uniforms of the Belgian Gendarmerie) confirm that **Hergé’s intention was to locate the Hall in his native Belgium**.” also an interesting tidbit: “In the Golden Press editions, the name is Americanized to Hudson Manor, suggesting a location along the Hudson River in the state of New York.” ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2016, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-kids-still-read-tintin/756406/28 "2016-06-04T22:45:03Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > The stories and drawing and jokes are all good, even after all these years. Consider it a teachable moment - just have a word or three with your kid on changing standards and how we ought to see, and treat, women and different ethnic and cultural groups better now. This My mother’s favorite movie is Gone With the Wind. That doesn’t mean she’s blind to th issues that modern viewers might raise. When I was eleven or so, and saw it with her in the theater(a retro theater) I heard people laugh when Pork, Gerald’s valet and butler, told Scarlett he and the remaining slaves couldn’t milk the cow. “We’s house servants Miss Scarlett!” Later Mom told me how sad it was that a person’s thinking could be warped like that, by the social, cultural, and mental repression they had suffered. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2016, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-kids-still-read-tintin/756406/29 "2016-06-04T22:51:36Z")
> [@Baker](#): > > This > > My mother’s favorite movie is Gone With the Wind. That doesn’t mean she’s blind to th issues that modern viewers might raise. When I was eleven or so, and saw it with her in the theater(a retro theater) I heard people laugh when Pork, Gerald’s valet and butler, told Scarlett he and the remaining slaves couldn’t milk the cow. “We’s house servants Miss Scarlett!” Later Mom told me how sad it was that a person’s thinking could be warped like that, by the social, cultural, and mental repression they had suffered. Vague memory. Weren’t house slaves of a higher rank/more trusted/educated/something else than field slaves? ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2016, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-kids-still-read-tintin/756406/30 "2016-06-05T03:45:45Z")
It varied. Higher rank, yes, in the pecking order among slaves; more trusted, probably (field hands wouldn’t have access to the master’s valuables); better educated, not necessarily. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2016, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-kids-still-read-tintin/756406/31 "2016-06-05T04:58:07Z")
Once upon a time, I was a kid. At age 9 I discovered TinTin at a neighbor’s. I was 9, fifty-some years ago. The prime demographic. It was tedious, embarrassingly racist, AND IT WAS1963 IN VIRGINIA. A vote against. It was of a time, which has passed. ---
**Author:** ![TheInimitableMaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b19c9b/32.png) [@TheInimitableMaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheInimitableMaven)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2016, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-kids-still-read-tintin/756406/32 "2016-06-05T05:23:30Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > Some people need to grow thicker skins and quit whining about things they can never change. Amen and seriously. If Tintin is good enough for **[Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson to create and release a critically acclaimed motion picture in 2011](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Adventures_of_Tintin_(film))**, it is more than good enough for kids who want to read it to do so and those adult enough to understand that yes, perceptions, mindsets, and what were considered acceptable portrayals were indeed different back then. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2016, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-kids-still-read-tintin/756406/33 "2016-06-05T05:28:13Z")
> [@TheInimitableMaven](#): > > Amen and seriously. Who are you people talking to? There’s not a single person in this thread who has said people shouldn’t read Tintin. ETA: Sorry, except for **dropzone**. But that was thirty posts into the thread. Other than him, this thread has been overwhelmingly positive. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2016, 5:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-kids-still-read-tintin/756406/34 "2016-06-05T05:34:25Z")
> [@Trinopus](#): > > Yes…but **thelurkinghorror** said “Americans,” and I think they’re much more like British policemen than any American stereotype. **lurkinghorror** said “Belgians.” > [@](#): > > (If Belgian police actually dressed like that…was it in imitation of British police? Who did it first?) I don’t think Thompson and Thomson are wearing police uniforms. They’re plainclothes detectives - those are just dark suits, in the fashion of the time… Compare [this](http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gXNvlXWoaNg/Tsu3MaLzLkI/AAAAAAAADhM/lxuhC-gIHmg/s1600/thompson20and20thomson.jpg) with [another famous Belgian detective from the same era.](http://23g9r82i3f1d2a63qz3akhv1.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/53/files/2014/07/Poirot.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2016, 5:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-kids-still-read-tintin/756406/35 "2016-06-05T05:36:11Z")
You better note that. I mean, c’mon! ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2016, 6:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-kids-still-read-tintin/756406/36 "2016-06-05T06:07:27Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > **lurkinghorror** said “Belgians.” He said [strikeout]Americans[/strikout] Belgians. > [@](#): > > I don’t think Thompson and Thomson are wearing police uniforms. They’re plainclothes detectives - those are just dark suits, in the fashion of the time. . . . But it’s a British fashion. Is it also a Belgian or continental fashion? Who had it first? In the translations, they sometimes are from Interpol. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2016, 6:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-kids-still-read-tintin/756406/37 "2016-06-05T06:39:16Z")
Are my posts going into some void instead of actually appearing here? The operative term is “Ugly” and does not necessarily apply to any particular nationality. ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2016, 7:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-kids-still-read-tintin/756406/38 "2016-06-05T07:03:40Z")
The fact I have zero problem with pro-Imperialist viewpoints is probably a matter of public knowledge here by now, but generally I don’t think there’s anything in the Tintin comics which an intelligent child would be warped by, especially if there’s an engaged parent saying “Obviously we know black people aren’t like the ones in this book, but they had some different ideas about things back when it was written and times have changed.” Also, in the versions of the comics I recall reading, I’m pretty sure Thompson & Thomson were indeed described as Interpol agents. And I’d love to know how Tintin kept his job as a journalist so long, since he almost never seemed to actually file stories on anything. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2016, 7:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-kids-still-read-tintin/756406/39 "2016-06-05T07:35:18Z")
> [@Trinopus](#): > > But it’s a British fashion. Is it also a Belgian or continental fashion? Who had it first? The bowler/derby hat they wear is definitely of British origin, but by the time the detectives are introduced, I’m pretty sure it was universalized (see: Chaplin, Chaz.) However, they are clearly intended to be Belgian (or, “to be precise”, Francophone), given that their names are “Dupond et Dupont” in the original. ---
**Author:** ![WotNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e19b73/32.png) [@WotNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WotNot)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2016, 7:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-kids-still-read-tintin/756406/40 "2016-06-05T07:55:04Z")
> [@Trinopus](#): > > But it’s a British fashion. Is it also a Belgian or continental fashion? Who had it first? The only thing I can see about Thomson and Thompson that might _seem_ British is their bowler hats, but they were as common in Belgium at the time as they were in Britain or America. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-kids-still-read-tintin/756406.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-kids-still-read-tintin/756406.md?page=3)