Evangeline is an epic tale of a great collective injustice, which led to the many wanderings of an exiled people, the Acadians, as they sought to put down new roots and rebuild their lives in unfamiliar lands. It is also a story of individual loss and suffering in the form of Evangeline, who is a portrait of ideal womanhood as Longfellow understood it. She embodies loyalty, steadfastness, devotion, faithfulness, virtue, and service.

Part the First

Prelude, Cantos I-III

Following the practice of the traditional epic, Longfellow announces his theme at the beginning of the poem. The main theme is “the beauty and strength of woman’s devotion,” as stated in the prelude (Line 17).

Most of the first three cantos are set in the idyllic farming community of Grand-Pré, which is presented as a pastoral heaven. The village lies in a “fruitful valley” (Line 3) on the shores of the Basin of Minas, in Novia Scotia. Meadows, orchards, and fields of flax stretch out east, west, and south, and there are also dikes that hold back the tides. It is a peaceful place in which people live contentedly. They are simple, devout, religious folk, who follow the precepts and participate in the liturgy of the Roman Catholic church, as presented to them by the parish priest, who also serves as the teacher at the school.