Hardship

The overall narrative is defined by a heavy focus on the nature and effects of hardship, both physical and emotional, and this thematic focus serves to demonstrate how human resilience and human frailty can coexist even within one person or group. For example, the entire French expedition storyline is most strongly characterized by its attention to the repeated hardships and dangers faced by the Frenchmen. They must endure not only the hostility of the natural landscape and atmosphere, but also the hostility of human forces such as the Saturiwa tribe, the Utina tribe, and the Spanish conquistadors. This political tension is worsened by Laudonnière's own political miscalculations. As Fourneaux notes, “Our commander has set us between warring tribes” (102). As the storyline progresses, conditions grow increasingly desperate for the Frenchmen. They suffer starvation during a famine and eventually must flee from Spanish aggression. Le Moyne is...