Tintin in the Congo by Herge

Product Description

Tintin goes to the Congo. Fascimile edition of the original.
Product Details
Amazon Sales Rank: #31963 in Books
Published on: 2005-09-05
Binding: Hardcover
64 pages
Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
In Tintin in the Congo, one of his earliest adventures, our intrepid reporter hunts down both criminals and wild game. The story was written in 1930 and first appeared in book form in 1931, and some of the parts are so dated that for years the book was unavailable in English. This edition reprints on black-and-white newsprint the original 1931 version. In one scene, Tintin tells a group of African children "Today, I'm going to talk to you about your country: Belgium!" When the story was updated and colorized (but not translated into English) in 1946, this became a simple lesson in addition. In addition to the colonial attitude, the Africans are portrayed as primitive, simple-minded folk ("He doesn't look very bright," Snowy opines about their guide), and Tintin reveals a brutal side by slaughtering half the wildlife on the continent (including blowing up a rhinoceros with dynamite!) and declaring while pursuing an enemy, "Sure as my name's Tintin, I'll get rid of him once and for all." Herge himself was embarrassed by much of Tintin in the Congo, and it's not a part of the regular canon, but fans who can accept it as a product of its time will enjoy seeing their hero in one more adventure, one that provides a jumping-off point for the much-better-known Tintin in America. --David Horiuchi
Customer Reviews

Classic Tintin - Second in the series
This is the second in the 24 Tintin adventures. Tintin the reporter is sent to the Belgium Congo where he does some big game hunting, very little reporting, and busts a diamond smuggling ring run by Al Capone's gang in America (third book is "Tintin in America" where they meet).

Tintin looks like the Tintin in subsequent novels and his character has 'gelled' (See my review of Tintin in the Land of the Soviets). Herge's depiction of Africans is dated (1930s) and may be offensive to some. However, his treatment of Africans in the plot is evenhanded; just as there are good and bad white characters, there are good and bad African characters.

All in all, a must have for a complete Tintin collection.

Outstanding for Children
This one is great for kids. Every child in North America and Europe should read this wonderful book.

Tintin's un-pc second album
Tintin's second album is famous (or infamous) for its alleged racism. Actually, I think a better word would be paternalism: this book doesn't hate Africans as much as consider them like children, unable to govern themselves and in need of guidance from their white european masters. (In real history, the Belgian colonization of the Congo was known for its exceptional brutality, even by the standards of European colonialism, but I guess that's another story). No wonder this book is hard to get in an english version: it was not translated but after many decades. The book itself is typical of the early Tintin books with its protagonist having hair thin escapes from sure death at almost every page, though here the situations are probably more absurd than at any Tintin album (Tintin killing a rhino by drilling a hole in it and putting dynamite inside?). It's also very politically uncorrect by today standards as Tintin decimates the local fauna without seeming guilt. Despite all this, the book in itself is not a disaster. Actually, and taking aside its politically dubious undertones, it's quite entertaining.