Was weakling smurf doped? another glance at the olympic athletics in the 80s

Abstract

Graphic novels are an integral part of the cultural life of the young. With millions of copies, the publication series The Smurfs is known worldwide. But what messages send these publications to the youth? It is necessary to ask on behalf of the sport representation in this series. Moreover, it is important to analyse the image of these publications regarding doping. This paper presents the results of the study of the famous volume The Smurfs Olympics, that obtained impressive business results, and published in 1983, some months before the start of the Olympic Games in Los Angeles. On the one hand, by interpreting the humorous effects exploited by this comic, this article reveals the existence of a widespread criticism of the sports and Olympism phenomenon, which could reveal its consistence with the way in which the younger generation of the 80s apprehend the competitive practices. Furthermore, the study reveals that this volume attains to satisfy both ardent critics of attempts of the impertinent youth and the institutional demands symbolized by the ministerial and parental censorship concerned about social peace. In other words, this comic would have the merit of achieving the destruction of this generational opposition by sending a critical discourse regarding sport embellished by an educational and optimistic message.