This excerpt from N. E. S. Griffiths’s essay gives a concise portrayal of the Acadian myth of the deportation:
“The policy of neutrality which the Acadians had preserved until 1755 led them to create the myth of themselves as sinless victims, the British as somewhat stupid criminals. The Acadians came quickly to the conviction that they had done nothing to warrant their expulsion. During the 19th century the tradition of their Catholic belief emphasized the necessity of forgiving one’s enemies as well as the glories attendant upon suffering nobly the slings and arrows of the world. As a result, the Acadian myth of the deportation demanded some form of forgiveness of those who had so cruelly, so unjustly brought suffering upon them.”
