An author, distinguished historian David Hackett Fischer, tells
us how Champlain, a pragmatic, thoughtful French explorer of the early 1600’s, experienced
the cultures of the Algonquin Indians whom he encountered. A man who’d emerged from the bloody violence
of France’s religious wars with an open, rather than a closed mind, Champlain
understood how to induce people of varied backgrounds to cooperate. His belief
in the universal nature of humankind, whatever their nation, allowed him to
approach the Indigenous Sauvage with
an attitude of respect.
A dream - so ephemeral a thing! Here is one that Champlain
experienced 400 + years ago in the forests north of the lake which is now named
for him. With a war party of sixty Indians, he and two other Frenchmen traveled
into the forbidden territory of the Iroquois, with whom the Algonquin’s were eternally
at war. They traveled at night, and every
morning, as they drew closer to danger, the places where the guardians of the
Eastern Gate, the Mohawk, lay in wait for their enemies, the chiefs asked
Champlain “if he had dreamed about their enemies.” For many days, “no” was the
answer. Then, one morning, about 11 a.m.
he awoke and called the Indians to him. At last, as they’d seemed to expect, he’d
dreamed.
“I dreamed I saw in the lake near a mountain, our enemies,
the Iroquois drowning before our eyes. I wanted to rescue them, but our Indian
allies told me that we should let them all die, for they were worth nothing.”
David Hackett Fischer then adds: “The Indians recognized the
place in Champlain’s dream as a site that lay just ahead, and they were much
relieved…To Champlain’s Indian allies, dreams not only revealed the future. They
controlled it.”
A few days later, the Mohawk encountered European firearms
in battle for the first time. Surprised by a man in armor and two sharpshooters
with long-distance, deadly weapons stationed amid the enemy’s ranks, they were
defeated. Champlain’s dream, seen as a prophecy, was true.
To me it seems that Champlain, surrounded by a gigantic,
primal forest and the aboriginal people who inhabited it, had moved into another
kind of consciousness, one which transcended his European world view and linear
time. The chiefs were content, pleased
that their new friend had dreamed so positively, while Champlain, privately, may
have been amazed - and even more so in the aftermath of the battle.
Juliet Waldron
Historical Novels
Quotes taken from Champlain's Dream by David Hackett Fischer
It is interesting that they turned to Champlain as the dreamer. Perhaps it was a way of honoring him as a brother.
ReplyDeleteApparently, according to the book, all the Indians were examining their dreams. As Champlain had presented himself as "chief" among the French, so his dreams too were of interest. Champlain is the source for the story, probably because the circumstances, as they unfolded, were astonishing. As we learn so little about him on this side of the border, I'm finding this book a fascinating piece of early colonial history.
ReplyDeleteJust a note--in the early-17th century, European guns weren't superior to Native bows.
ReplyDeleteThis is true--but they certainly had that terror effect--of a new--and impressively loud--weapon. Thanks, Kim...
ReplyDelete