‘In science, decency cannot play a role’

Marten Toonder was a Dutch writer and cartoonist. He lived from 1912 to 2005. For a significant part of his life, he lived in Ireland. It was there that he produced most of his 177 comics centred around Heer Bommel and Tom Poes. For Marten Toonder, the saying ‘Who laughs not, who beholds man’ was quite true. His comics show great insight into human nature.

In his Bommel comics, he brings animals on stage. Like Heer Bommel is a bear, Tom Poes a cat, mayor Dickerdack a hippopotamus, servant Joost a dog, scholar Professor Sickbock a goat with big horns, nobleman Marquis de Canteclaer de Barneveld a rooster et cetera. Why exactly these animals, becomes clear from the stories. Also appearing in his stories are gnomes such as Kwetal, goblins and gnomes, Some characters have curiously human forms, such as magister of black arts Hocus Pas, painter Terpen Tijn and research scientist Professor Prlwytzkofsky.

The central characters in the stories are Heer Bommel and Tom Poes. Heer Bommel has little intelligence, though he is intuitive. Because he acts impulsively, he keeps getting caught up in problems. He would stay entangled in it if Tom Poes ‘invent a trick’ would bail him out. At the end of the story, when everything is back in order and servant Joost has prepared a big dinner, Heer Bommel delivers a speech in which he mostly praises himself and Tom Poes mutters ‘hm’.

I am a great lover of Marten Toonder's stories. In my books and other publications, I have several times incorporated one of his comic strips. For example, ‘The Super Bosses’, in which the ‘top ten’ act. Super rich, who steer the economy through multinational corporations. They have secluded themselves to be safe from the general public. Heer Bommel is admitted to the top ten because his capital reaches critical mass. It is so pre-counted that capital coalesces into a giant sphere that sucks all the money out of the environment. By quarantining capital, the banker prevents the economy from getting into trouble.

As a member of the ‘upper ten’, Heer Bommel does what he always does: he makes a mess of things. It is so chaotic and unpredictable that the chairman of the top ten AWS (short for Amos W Steinhacker, a temperamental frog ‘and call me sir, I'm not a pauper’), starts to think that Heer Bommel is playing a ‘gossamer game’. He makes the Stockexchange explode - literally - and gets the top ten into trouble, but in the end everything comes back to normal.

Not too long ago, I came upon a comic strip I did not know before, at least, maybe I read it once, as it dates from 1971, but as I read it now, it is new to me. It is called ‘The Ombrenger’. Naturally, it is associated with killing people and that element does appear to be present. ‘Om’, however, turns out to be an element in the air that, when extracted, can provide huge amounts of energy that can propel cars, ships, planes, machines, appliances.

The discoverer of Om is Professor Sickbock. He is experimenting with Om and due to lack of money, his project is in danger of stalling. Heer Bommel encounters Sickbock on a walk. The scientist manages to get him excited about the project and Heer Bommel wants to invest in it ‘money plays no role for a gentleman of standing’. However, Professor Sickbock comes into contact with the aforementioned AWS, chairman of the Earth Bank and the top ten. AWS buys Sickbock, who has no problem putting Bommel aside.

' Ei, ei, muttered Sickbock. 'I don't know who this AWS is, but the proposal is not unattractive. Admittedly, it thwarts my appointment with Bommel; but come on! In science, decency can play no part.'

With AWS steering the project, things are being done big. A huge factory is being built with a laboratory, production hall and the best equipment. Before long, cars are being produced on the assembly line, using Om as fuel. Mayor Dickerdack is delighted. ‘Om’ is the panacea against air and environmental pollution, the waste problem is solved, in short he, Dickerdack is credited in the golden book of the best administrators.

Then it turns out, what Sickbock already knew, that if Om is taken out of the air, there will be a shortage causing the inhabitants of the city of Rommeldam to suffer from dizziness, headaches and a sense of disorientation. Dickerdack wants to know nothing of it, he has the newspaper write that the dizziness and other discomforts, are due to ‘an autumn flu’ and that it will pass. Psychologist Drs Zielknijper, a sheep, is also called in.

‘This issue is not so difficult at all,’ Drs Zielknijper spoke, standing up shakily. 'Society is evolving in a healthy way and it is the duty of every right-thinking citizen to adapt. If we get a society with less Om, then we must learn to need less Om. We have to adapt to society. Society cannot adapt to us, can it? Imagine that!

This viewpoint is music to Mayor Dickerdack's ears. The governor decides to go ahead with the project, also because the new industry will bring prosperity to the city. The order is issued that petrol cars should no longer be driven and only Om vehicles. Needless to say, the health status of the citizens will deteriorate badly. However, the government has no intention of removing the cause.

Heer Bommel applied to civil servant Dorknoper for a permit to take Om off the air at the beginning of the project, when he still seemed to have a role to play in it. When much later this permit emerges from the official mills, Bommel gets the letter with the permit pushed into his hands by Dorknoper. Bumble himself attaches no value to it because he does not understand its meaning. Tom Puss who carelessly picks up the paper discarded by Bumble, however, does. He manages to make clear to Lord Bumble what can be done with this permit. When this gets through to Bumblebee, he forbids further Om extraction, to the impotent fury of AWS and Sickbock.

I think it is a brilliant story, with which Marten Toonder once again showed his great insight into human nature and society. The corrupt scientist, the scheming psychologist, the ruthless big businessman, the megalomaniac mayor, they all collaborate on something that could lead to the downfall of Rommeldam. Also that health, the interest of people, is subordinated to ambitions, megalomania, greed for profit and not wanting to acknowledge mistakes. It's like our current society…

© Ad Broere