The First World War in Bande dessinée Scholarship

Abstract

Bruno Denechere and Luc Revillon, 14-18 dans la bande dessinee: Images de la Grande Guerre de Forton a Tardi ['World War I in [Franco-Belgian] comics: Images of the Great War from Forton to Tardi'], Collection La bulle au Carre (Turquant: Cheminements, 2008), 167 pp. isbn 978-2-84478-697-5 (euro24). Vincent Marie and L'Historial de la Grande Guerre, Images de la Grande Guerre dans la bande dessinee de 1914 a aujourd'hui ['Images of the Great War in Comics from 1914 to the Present'] (Milan: 5 Continents Editions, 2009). 111 pp. isbn 978-88-7439-518-7 (euro25). In the world of comics one French artist appears to have garnered a monopoly on the representation of the First World War, or so it seemed during the 1970s and 1980s. Whenever the Great War was mentioned by European comic book readers, it was never long before the name of Jacques Tardi came up. His fascinating work on this dramatic period has appealed to many, but Tardi was neither the first nor the last to portray the Great War in comics. The war was present in the relatively young comics medium soon after the outbreak of the international conflict in 1914 and it is currently featured on a regular basis in the works of both prominent and lesser-known comics writers. However, this does not mean that the First World War has maintained a constant share in the largely increased comics production during the last century, as is made clear in two recent studies. 14-18 dans la bande dessinee: Images de la Grande Guerre de Forton a Tardi was written by Luc Revillon, historian and comics book author, and history teacher Bruno Denechere. Their dedication of the book to their grandfathers who fought in the First World War signals their personal interest in this historical episode. Their overall goal is to present a panorama of the themes, viewpoints and tones used in the comics-art representation of the First World War and, by doing so, to clarify how comics artists participated in the cultural history of their time. In particular, they show that comic strips have changed a lot since 1914, developing from a medium for children to a medium that appeals especially to adults and adolescents. In the introductory chapter, 'Drawing the War', Revillon and Denechere offer a short overview of the various comics publications in which stories about the Great War were published. Ignoring the images d'Epinal tradition, they cover the children's magazines published during the First World War period, the post-Second World War Uncle Paul stories (Les Belles histoires de l'oncle Paul ['Uncle Paul's Beautiful Stories']) in the Franco-Belgian comics weekly Spirou, and the more recent publications in hardcover comics for an adult readership. In the first instance, the authors make very fruitful use of six French children's magazines published during the Great War: Les Belles Images ['Beautiful Images'], L'Etoile noeliste ['The Christmas Star'], La Jeune France ['Young France'], Les Trois Couleurs ['The Three Colours'], L'Epatant ['The Swell'] and La Semaine de Suzette ['Suzette's Week']. Unfortunately it remains unclear why these titles were selected from the approximately fifteen relevant titles. Do they represent a certain variety in socio-political background of the involved publishing firms? Were there differences between the intended and reached (male or female) audience? These questions remain unanswered. The second chapter is 'un dossier specifique' entirely devoted to Jacques Tardi, a treatment that is explained by his inevitable position as a point of reference. This position is clearly illustrated by the fact that over 10 per cent of the BD titles listed in this study's bibliography, which covers the French comics output on the First World War since the 1970s, are works by Tardi. Denechere and Revillon consider him a man with a mission - to present the horror of real warfare - and characterise his work as hostile towards heroism and patriotism. Not only do Tardi's representations of life in the trenches not include any heroes in the traditional sense, he does not even have a main protagonist. …