Panels from the South Seas: Pacific Colonialism, Archaeology, and Pseudoscience in Francophone Bande Dessinée

Abstract

Within “lost civilizations” narratives, the Pacific Islands bear great importance through the popularity of the mythical continent Mu. First mentioned by Brasseur de Bourbourg in 1864, this supposed homeland of a flourishing civilization that vanished into the ocean echoed the fate of its Atlantean twin. Despite its scientific refutation, Mu fuelled the imagination behind many bandes dessinées. Authors’ overreliance upon the myth has nourished a damaging narrative concerning Pacific Islanders’ traditional cultures. While acknowledging that “borrowing” is common in the creation of imaginative narratives, I examine the syncretic representations of ancient Pacific cultures in European bande dessinée in order to illuminate these concerns and discuss how they reflect the history of ideas about the origins of Pacific Islanders. I end by examining the place of the graphic novel medium in the sharing of scientific ideas and the responsibilities that archaeologists must now take to redress detrimental biases towards indigenous communities.