The Werewolf
The Werewolf is one of the most classical mythical creatures known all over the world. The story changes from retelling to retelling but they all follow similar lines: a man afflicted with a curse, the ability to transform into a feared beast. The Werewolf is a prominent character in European folklore, specifically French tradition. The migration of French people to North America would bring the creature into North American tradition. The man with the ability to transform into a wolf appears in French Canadian, Métis, and Acadian lore, spreading the creature all over Canada and the United States.
Among the French Canadians, the Werewolf is known as the Loup-Garou. The creature is a cursed man who often takes the form of a wolf but can often appear as a dog, a small cow, a pig, a cat, and sometimes even a bird. The curse was tied to religion, people who carried the curse were said to be bad Catholics. An example of this is failure to attend mass or sinning. Loup-Garous were cursed for one hundred and one days. Over this time every evening, the person was transformed into a wolf and set to wander the countryside. This curse could only be broken by the drawing of the cursed blood, on the chance someone recognized the victim and had mercy on them. Themes from the French-Canadian legend carry over into the more popularized version of the Werewolf; creatures still transform uncontrollably at nigh, yet the religious aspects have faded away. [1]
The Métis are a group sometimes referred to as "Canada's forgotten people". Consisting of both Indigenous and French-Canadian traditions their culture is extremely unique. In 1885 the Métis people were dispersed across North America following the battle of Batoche and the execution of Louis Riel. Their stories continued orally and were preserved by elders. these stories were greatly influenced by French Canadian stories, and they often share similar characters and themes.
The Rougarou is the name for the werewolf seen in Métis story. Very similar to the Loup-Garou, the creature is a man cursed to shapeshift into a wolf (or other domestic animal) after a religious failing. Though less prominent, the cursed could also appear as a woman. often, the cursed wanders at night looking for someone who can draw blood from them. This is often another person, conducting mundane tasks. The curses are healed after the woman can cut them with something like a knife or her set of keys. The story is important to the Métis community as it deals with themes of conflicting identity and traditional religious devotion. [2]
A story told by Marjorie Beaucage, a Métis activist and filmmaker from Manitoba. Beaucage tells grade three and four students from Saskatchewan about the Rougarou in 2015.
in 1775 British troops forcibly removed the Acadians, a group of French colonists from what is present-day Nova Scotia. The expulsion of the Acadians would result in years of wanderings for this group of people. Many of the Acadians would end up in what is now Louisiana and would become the cultural group called Cajuns. This group now being close to the Creole, French-speaking North Africans, would create the culturally diverse folklore that Louisiana is known for. [3]
The Werewolf is seen in Cajun folklore, again known as the Rougarou. Slightly different than before the Cajun Rougarou has more humanistic features. Freakishly tall with a humanoid body and the head of a wolf, the Rougarou haunts the swaps present in the Louisiana landscape. Less of a religious figure and more of a boogeyman the Rougarou explains the mystery of the swamp and scares children into behaving. [4]
Most people are familiar with the werewolf. A character who transforms into a fearsome creature under the light of the full moon. Though this creature stems from European tradition it became deeply tied to North American lore through migration. The curse is meant to scare people into correct behaviour, whether religious or not. Though the Werewolf/Loup-Garou/Rougarou may not hold the same connotation it begins with the creature carrying significance into the modern world.
References
1. Pamela Sing, “Mission mitchif: Courir le Rougarou pour renouveler ses liens avec la tradition orale,” International Journal of Canadian Studies / Revue internationale d’études canadiennes, no. 41 (2010): 193–212, https://doi.org/10.7202/044167ar.
2. Sing.
3. Eric Daigre, “Cajun and Creole Folktales: The French Oral Tradition of South Louisiana.,” MELUS 22, no. 2 (June 22, 1997): 129–33.
4. Dana Jensen McNamara, “Save the Swamp: But, Beware the ‘Rougarou,’” The National Wildlife Federation Blog, October 29, 2019, https://blog.nwf.org/2019/10/save-the-swamp-but-beware-the-rougarou/.