I had never read Tintin before, but I knew of the premise- a boy of maybe 12 or 13 and his dog taking on villains across the world singlehandedly. Any boy's dream, if the boy in question was born in the first half of the twentieth century. This is no longer a tale guaranteed to enthrall modern adolescent boys, whose toys and electronics now consist of high grade electronics and elaborate video games.
I remember reading Tom Sawyer in my seventh grade English class in which most of my male classmates would loudly complain about the story being boring, old-fashioned, or lame. In fact, the only man I talked to at the time who loved Tom Sawyer was my dad. My dad loved the adventure genre, and could never stop recommending books like Treasure Island, Robinson Crusoe, Don Quixote, and of course The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (all of which are very similar to Hergé's personal tastes). I mentioned that I was reading Tintin to one of my male professors and he too was excited-he talked about how much he loved the story, how he read it all the time as a boy, and how surprised he was that "people still read that stuff." Both his and my dad's love of the boyish tale of adventure Hergé spins made me consider the intended audience of Tintin. While Tintin has not changed over time the target audience has- just not in the way I initially expected. Tintin's audience has remained the same, they've just grown up.
It feels strange how, in a class where the evolution of the comic is the main focus, the stasis of the comic and the evolution of the audience are all I can think about. Even the aesthetic of Tintin has persevered to the modern day newspaper strip. The clean gutters, realistic background and cartoonish characters are still prevalent today, while the people who read them age. While many will continue to bill Tintin as a boy's classic, I argue that Tintin was popular with a specific generation of boys because of the cultural details and nuances with which they could identify.
I think you raise an interesting perspective about the readership of Tintin and other similarly aged comics. Many times the key readership from its initial publication grow up, and carry their love for the comic with them. It gives a concrete demographic to this mysterious adult readership that is referenced in the intended for kids vs adults argument.
ReplyDeleteIn some ways, I would argue however, that there is a younger, modern readership available for the comics. Particularly that, as a generation ages, it carries its media with it, and then passes it on to their children. Much like your Dad recommended many adventure stories to you, my dad also introduced me to many of his favorite books. As the original readership for the Tintin comics tended toward elementary school boys, there has been a resurgence in readership among the same demographic. I agree that by middle school, most kids want little to do with older material, especially literature (let alone, literature recommended by their parents!). However, this carries a different appeal in the graphic media and timeless storyline. I think that it is what makes the question of intended audience so interesting: not only that there is an aging readership from its original printing, but there is also a new, young generation. It makes spanning this gap even harder for publishers.