Évangéline: The Many Identities of a Literary Icon
360
Évangéline: The Many Identities of a Literary Icon
360Paperback
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Overview
The eponymous character of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's epic poem, Évangéline, is an Acadian girl searching for her long-lost love, Gabriel, during the Expulsion of the Acadians (1755–1764). Originally published in 1847, Longfellow's poem throws into sharp relief a dark chapter of Canada's history, while also showcasing a strong female character that has left an indelible mark on generations of Acadians, French Canadians, Cajuns, and Creoles.
Examining aspects both historical and literary that led to Évangéline's idolization across countries, cultures, and decades, sociologist Joseph Yvon Thériault presents three versions of the celebrated heroine:Évangéline the American, Évangéline the Acadian, and Évangéline the Cajun. The crux of his narrative seeks to understand if these three distinct identities might be merged, and whether they will survive the effects of globalization.
Passionate and engaging, Évangéline is a postmodern study on the many interpretations of this literary icon, and the melting pot of cultures she has traversed and influenced. Features a colour photo insert.
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781771089258 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Nimbus Publishing, Limited |
| Publication date: | 08/11/2022 |
| Pages: | 360 |
| Product dimensions: | 5.75(w) x 8.25(h) x (d) |
About the Author
Aycha Fleury is an editor, translator, writer, storyteller, and political scientist. She wears French like a glove and English like a mitt and helps stories find a new language to shelter them and make them alive. She has participated in numerous reconciliation circles with Indigenous communities and awareness events on sexual violence. She has written and translated hundreds of stories in the last few years and refuses to become too expert. And Aycha tries, every day and one word at a time, to participate in a more just, more equitable, more beautiful world...a world that "sounds" better.
Amélie Lemieux, Ph.D., is Assistant Professor of Literacy and Technology Education at Mount Saint Vincent University in Halifax. She holds a BA in French Literature and Translation Studies, and completed an SSHRC-funded PhD in Literacy and Education at McGill University in Montreal.
Table of Contents
Introduction vii
Between Poetry and History vii
Part I Évangéline the American 1
Longfellow and the American Tale 7
The Enlightenment in America 7
The Romantic Era in America 12
When the Mayflower Meant Everything 14
Populist Democracy and Religious Renewal 18
The Providential Mission of America 20
Longfellow and the "Celestial Mechanics" of America 22
A Cosmopolitan Nation 25
Évangéline, The First Woman 31
Évangéline, the Founder 33
The Odyssey of a Chosen People 36
Democratic America 39
The Frontier 44
The Protestant Romance of American Catholicism 52
A Memory from beyond the Grave 61
Longfellow at the Mercy of Modernist Critics 61
From the Mayflower to Ellis Island 64
"Written their history stands on tablets of stone in the churchyards" 70
Part II Évangéline the Acadian 77
The Battle Over Lost Souls 83
The Facts 83
Evangeline and the French Canadian Narrative 89
Évangéline Misses Her Homeland 95
Gabriel Goes Off to War for the Homeland 105
The Quarrel of the Historians 109
The Acadians Receive Évangéline 119
Rameau Sets Foot in Acadie 119
Before the National Reference 127
Recollections of the Wars and the Great Upheaval 133
A Society Awakens in the Light of Evangeline 138
The Delegate of the "Little Nation" 144
The Children of Évangéline 147
Rameau Against Evangeline 149
The Evangeline Moment 151
Evangeline: Calling Card or National Heroine? 155
Evangeline Settles Once Again in Grand-Pré 162
Évangéline the Second 175
Anti-Evangeline Anger 175
The Reference Tilts 178
The Évangéline of Memory and the Evangeline of Society 185
Évangéline Gets Out of Her Reserve 190
The Political Shift 193
A Territorialized Reference 199
From Reference to Pride 202
Evangelist: "I Know You Are, But What Am I?" 206
Part III Évangéline the Cajun 221
Évangéline of Troy 227
The True Story of Évangéline 227
"White Trash" 230
Creoles, Cajuns, and "Negroes" 232
Let's Stay in Louisiana 239
What Happened to These Acadians? 242
Acadia Blends Into Cajun Country 247
When Being a Cajun Meant Belonging to a Class 251
Acadia Postbellum 254
From "Cadjin" to "Cajun" by Way of Évangéline 261
The Ethnic Entrepreneur 261
Evangeline Country 265
Cajun Renewal 270
"Don't Give Up the Word" 276
The Return of the Cajuns 282
Afterword: Postmodern Évangéline 293
Cosmopolitan Longfellow 293
The Return of Évangéline the American 298
AND (and) And 302
Superimposing Narratives 304
Universalizing the Narrative 308
Victimizing the Story 316
Acknowledgements 325