Evangeline: A Tale of Acadie

The drawn-out suffering and sorrow of the Acadians and of Evangeline in particular is a recurring motif. The words “sorrow” and “sorrowful” occur a total of 18 times in the poem. When the men of Grand-Pré first hear about the expulsion, they let out “a wail of sorrow and anger” (Part 1, Canto IV, Line 68). Father Felician then implores them to take note of the image of Christ on the cross, whose “sorrowful eyes” contain “meekness and holy compassion!” (Part 1, Canto IV, Line 94). This shows that Christ shares the sorrows of humanity, and it also reveals the link between sorrow and faith that is apparent throughout the poem. Religious faith is a way to cope with misfortune and grief. If sorrow is understood and handled wisely, it can make a person stronger, as it does with Evangeline. The necessity of such a response is abundantly clear. As the Acadians assemble at the shore awaiting deportation, the “sorrowful faces” (Part 1, Canto V, Line 70) of the people tell their own story. When Evangeline’s father dies that same day, the priest “repeated the service of sorrow,” and nature echoes it: “Lo! with a mournful sound, like the voice of a vast congregation, / Solemnly answered the sea, and mingled its roar with the dirges” (Part 1, Canto V, Lines 135-37). Thus, nature as well as Christ shares in human sorrow. For Evangeline, sorrow is her constant companion as she searches unsuccessfully for her husband, but she learns greatly from it: “Patience and abnegation of self, and devotion to others, / This was the lesson a life of trial and sorrow had taught her” (Part 2, Canto V, Lines 31-32). Only at the very last, after her momentary reunion before Gabriel’s death, does Evangeline’s sorrow abate: “All was ended now, the hope, and the fear, and the sorrow” (Part 2, Canto V, Line 125).