Travel Essays · Chapter
In the Valley of the Tarn explained
The narrator travels through the Valley of the Tarn, reflecting on the landscape and the spirit of the Camisards.
What happens
The narrator travels through the Valley of the Tarn, reflecting on the landscape and the spirit of the Camisards. He finds a small plateau to camp, but is anxious about discovery. The night is filled with mysterious rustlings, and he wakes to find peasants nearby, forcing a hasty departure.
Themes in this chapter
Nature and the Sublime
The valley of the Tarn is described with towering cliffs, chestnut trees like 'herded elephants,' and a landscape that inspires higher thoughts of Nature's powers.
Freedom vs. Confinement
The narrator camps in fear of discovery, hiding like a hunted Camisard, contrasting the Camisards' confident freedom in their faith.
Human Connection and Community
The Camisards are depicted as a community bound by psalm-singing and mutual support, even in war.
Characters to notice
- Modestine
The narrator's reluctant donkey, who is goaded and kicked up to the campsite and fed corn and bread.
- The Camisards
Their spirit and history are compared to the Scottish Covenanters; they are described as having bright visions and a light conscience.
- Séguier
Mentioned as having a soul like a garden, representing the Camisard spirit.
- Cavalier
Referenced in a tale of the Camisards dining in the woods with box-tree garlands.
- Captain Poul
Mentioned as a soldier feared by the Camisards, in a comparison to the narrator's fear of peasants.
Key passages
“The soul of Séguier, let us not forget, was like a garden.”
Séguier's inner self was pure and nurturing, like a well-tended garden.
Highlights the contrast between the Camisards' bright spirituality and the gloom of the Scottish Covenanters.
“We flew, when we heard the sound of psalm-singing, we flew as if with wings.”
The Camisards felt an uplifting, almost physical exhilaration when they heard psalms.
Illustrates the intense spiritual fervor that sustained the Camisards during their struggles.
“I concealed myself, for all the world like a hunted Camisard, behind my fortification of vast chestnut trunk.”
I hid behind the large chestnut tree as if I were a Camisard fleeing from soldiers.
The narrator draws a parallel between his own fear of discovery and the historical persecution of the Camisards.