Editing Hergé (section)

=== Political views ===

Politically, Hergé was a fervent [[royalist]], and remained so throughout his life,{{Sfn|Assouline|2009|p=147}} also believing in the [[Belgian nationalism|unity of Belgium]].{{Sfn|Assouline|2009|p=210}} In his early life, Hergé was "close to the traditional right-wing" of Belgian society,{{Sfn|Apostolidès|2010|p=9}} with Sterckx noting that through his work he was "plunged into rightist, even extreme right-wing circles".{{Sfn|Sterckx|2015|p=54}} According to Harry Thompson, such political ideas were not unusual in middle-class circles in Belgium of the 1920s and early 1930s, where "patriotism, Catholicism, strict morality, discipline and naivety were so inextricably bound together in everyone's lives that right-wing politics were an almost inevitable by-product. It was a world view shared by everyone, distinguished principally by its complete ignorance of the world."{{Sfn|Thompson|1991|p=24}} When Hergé took responsibility for {{Lang|fr|[[Le Petit Vingtième]]}}, he followed Wallez's instruction and allowed the newspaper to contain explicitly pro-fascist and [[Antisemitism|anti-semitic]] sentiment.{{Sfn|Assouline|2009|p=38}} Literary critic [[Jean-Marie Apostolidès]] noted that the character of Tintin was a personification of the "New Youth" concept which was promoted by the European far-right.{{Sfn|Apostolidès|2010|p=10}} Under Wallez's guidance, the early ''Adventures of Tintin'' contained explicit political messages for its young readership. ''Tintin in the Land of the Soviets'' was a work of [[Criticism of socialism|anti-socialist]] propaganda,{{Sfn|Farr|2001|p=12}} while ''Tintin in the Congo'' was designed to encourage colonialist sentiment toward the [[Belgian Congo]],{{Sfnm|1a1=Assouline|1y=2009|1p=26|2a1=Lofficier|2a2=Lofficier|2y=2002|2p=24|3a=Peeters|3y=2012|3p=45}} and ''Tintin in America'' was designed as a work of [[anti-Americanism]] heavily critical of capitalism, commercialism, and industrialisation.{{Sfnm|1a1=Farr|1y=2001|1p=35|2a1=Peeters|2y=2012|2p=56}}

In contrast to Hergé's involvement in Belgium's right-wing, Sterckx thought the cartoonist to have been "a liberal and independent spirit",{{Sfn|Sterckx|2015|p=54}} someone who was "the very opposite of a conservative [or] a reactionary of the right".{{Sfn|Sterckx|2015|p=7}} [[Michael Farr]] asserted that Hergé had "an acute political conscience" during his earlier days, as exemplified by his condemnation of racism in the United States evident in ''Tintin in America''.{{Sfn|Farr|2001|p=29}} Literary critic [[Tom McCarthy (novelist)|Tom McCarthy]] went further, remarking that ''Tintin in America'' represented the emergence of a "left-wing counter tendency" in Hergé's work that rebelled against his right-wing milieu and which was particularly critical of wealthy capitalists and industrialists.{{Sfn|McCarthy|2006|p=38}} This was furthered in ''The Blue Lotus'', in which Hergé rejected his "classically right-wing" ideas to embrace an [[anti-imperialism|anti-imperialist]] stance,{{Sfn|Peeters|2012|pp=76–77, 82}} and in a contemporary ''Quick & Flupke'' strip in which he lampooned the far-right leaders of Germany and Italy, [[Adolf Hitler]] and [[Benito Mussolini]].{{Sfn|Goddin|2008|p=148}} Although many of his friends and colleagues did so in the mid-1930s, Hergé did not join the far-right [[Rexist Party]], later asserting that he "had always had an aversion to it" and commenting that "to throw my heart and soul into an ideology is the opposite of who I am."{{Sfn|Peeters|2012|p=89}}