Where the Rougarou Goes to School RoadyGoat
Here in Lafayette, on the campus of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, the rougarou found a place in the English Department. From Griffin Hall, the department published an online literary journal named Rougarou. Its pages describe the creature as a shadow that haunts late night walkers, a ravenous beast, a ghost, a boogeyman, and a jealous lover transformed. They note that rougarou stories vary among families and locations in southern Louisiana. The man folks call on about those stories is Barry Jean Ancelet, the university's expert in Cajun folklore. Ancelet will tell you there is no single legend. In his telling, there are a number of stories that feature this legendary character in various ways. He has also said, "In one way or another, everybody believes in it." Whether anyone seriously believes a character roams the night, Ancelet says, is unimportant. "They believe in the stories. And they believe in the ability to scare people through the stories." And then the line that explains why we are telling you this at all. "It becomes a way of connecting one generation to the next." So as you pass the campus tonight, take Ancelet's point with you. You do not have to believe in the rougarou. You just have to hear the story, and pass it on.
