Brideshead Revisited (the Series) part two

Chapter 6 - Julia

This introduces Julia in more depth. We are now post Oxford and so post Waugh’s gay phase so naturally he moves on to a female love interest for Charles. Julia is clearly Mary Lygon but Evelyn and she were only ever friends.

Charles has returned to Paris and receives an unexpected visit from Rex. Rex has lost Seb and some money. He may have been taking him to the place in Zurich recommended for ‘drying out’. Charles can’t help but catch up on family gossip that interests him including that the Marchioness (Lady Marchmain) is sick, perhaps dying and remorseful concerning the parting fleas in the ear she had inflicted upon Charles. Charles remains fairly unmoved. This is the spring of 1925, Charles having first met Seb in 1922 according to Wikipedia’s entry on the serial adaptation.

The rest of this part of the chapter fills in the story of Julia, her travails with Rex and the unhappy state of affairs of belonging to a family with both the reduced circumstances of most such families in the offing and a social stain. The narrator of the novel (Charles) recalls that most of the news he relays here was reported to him ten years later in a storm on the Atlantic (of which more later). Rex apparently relayed some of the nature of the family’s financial issues but also his ongoing interest in marrying Julia regardless. The marriage occurred despite Rex having to convert in order to marry her, “Bridey’s bombshell” that Rex was still married (or at least if he was divorced his ex-wife was still living so that Catholic Canon law would make any marriage illegal unless that marriage could be annulled) and the Marchioness’s disapproval (but it had to be celebrated with a protestant rite as the annulment couldn’t happen, only Cordelia was willing to support it so it was celebrated without most of Julia’s prestigious if partly stained family in attendance (a great issue for Rex who sought social prestige) and it turned out a bit of a shambles in any case).

Chapter 7 - The Unseen Hook

This reflects upon grace. The heading refers to a quote about grace in one of the famous Father Brown novels the Marchioness had earlier read to her family at Brideshead. The hook in this case is bringing the narrator back to the Catholic family.

Charles was brought back to London by what he saw as a duty owed his nation by one of his class to help out during the General Strike of 1926. There he wanders the streets seeking an opportunity to do just that and bumps into ‘Boy’ who is able to give him one. He learns that the Marchioness is dying, being cared for by Julia and Cordelia and seeking a reconciliation with Charles. He also hears from Rex that the family is searching for Sebastian (this probably partly explains why the Marchioness wants to see Charles). After some work at the strike Charles dumps ‘Boy’ in the evening at a party when he meets Anthony Blanche there and goes off for some fun with his old frenemy (sometimes called Antoine on account of his murky ethnic origins and louche disposition). Antoine fills him in on the time he shared digs with Seb in Marseilles. There’s also talk of time spent in Athens and Constantinople (before ‘Boy’ discovers them again). After ‘Boy’ leaves again the discussion returns to Seb and his time in Tangiers. Antoine appears to believe he is now in “French Morocco” and now with a German hanger-on. 'Boy' returns having rung the fire alarm for a lark thus breaking up the party (as the brigade arrives).

The call comes from Julia and he arrives for an appointment at Marchers. He is greeted by Willcocks the servant and Julia (the Marchioness is too ill and frail for the reconciliation) and sent in search of Seb for the family (Samgrass is finally in disgrace – perhaps he was finally seen as surreptitiously colluding in or enabling Seb’s alleged offences) with the hope that he, too, can be fetched for a reconciliation with the Marchioness. The Wikipedia entry says that ‘Boy’ gives Charles the news of where Seb is (Fez). He travels to the British Consulate at Casablanca and from there is conducted to Fez’s “native town” where the consul believes him to be. He first meets the German at Seb’s house who directs him to the hospital/infirmary of San Sulpice. He finally discovers Seb there and learns he has 'the gripe'. He also learns the Marchioness has died while he and Seb are in Fez. Seb plans to stay put in Fez so Charles arranges with the family for him to have a regular allowance with further sums permitted to be drawn in proved emergencies. Seb is expelled from the hospital for smuggling in and consuming drinks thus sabotaging his treatment with his alcoholism so Charles finally leaves him back at home in the “native town” with his finances newly organised and with his German friend, Kurt, and their servant boy.

Chapter 8 - Brideshead Deserted

This reflects upon material dissolution. The dissolution and destruction of great houses is important to Waugh but here he wants to undermine its ultimate importance by finally contrasting it as the novel goes on with what is really important for him, spiritual resolution.

Charles returns to Marchers and reports to Bridey and Cordelia and receives a painting commission from Bridey. Cordelia apparently reminds Charles of Father Brown's unseen hook (of Catholicism and of the previous chapter) at this meeting. The hook actually refers to the catching of a thief by Father Brown but Cordelia links it to the hook of grace that she says she believes will bring Seb (and Julia) back to the church. Little does she know, apparently, that Charles, too, is on the hook.

Then there is a ten year gap. We learn that Charles has become a successful and exhibited painter of great houses (he had apparently begun his glittering career by painting four scenes from Marchers for Bridey as commissioned all those many years ago, as it had been about to be demolished to make way for flats – Rex had reserved a penthouse much to Cordelia’s disgust (which she had registered at that meeting ten years earlier)) and is now about to return from the New World (principally Mexico, I think) where he has been painting something completely different which he is hoping again to exhibit (in London).

He returns to a wife (and child with another on the way, I think) in New York. We learn also that his wife has been as much of a catch as Julia would have been (or even more so as she is also a beauty as well as a glittering society hostess with connections in the art world). She is also ‘Boy’s sister but she has been unfaithful and been caught. The marriage is unhappy and part of the real reason appears to be that the agnostic Charles is still in love with the Flytes (or is it that mysterious Catholicism?)

Estranged husband and wife Charles and Celia finally cross the Atlantic together on the usual means of crossing in those times – a fine ocean liner. By chance (or is it? Doo doo doo doo doo doo doo doo to the tune of the Twilight Zone theme), Julia is a fellow passenger.

Chapter 9 - Orphans of the Storm

This returns us to the story of Julia and Charles (the orphans).

They met on the crossing and eventually spent many days together virtually alone as a major swell left the bulk of the passengers (including Celia) and perhaps a good portion of the crew bedridden on account of seasickness. They apparently finally have sex (or at least ‘made love’) on board. The hook is now thoroughly baited and we’re all at sea. Julia is still going on about her religion. They meet again in London and Charles has his exhibition there. He also gets whisked off to a gay bar by Antoine where he has strips torn off his artistic enterprise. Among other things he calls Charles a ‘louche little boy’ (I think) which may have been a compliment coming from Antoine. Samgrass is also at the exhibition. Charles also discovers from Antoine that everybody knows about his affair with Julia and gathers from Celia that she certainly does. With that in mind he heads to Brideshead where the cuckold Rex awaits (with his wife (and Charles’s lover and partner in his Brideshead assignation) Julia).

Rex, Julia, Bridey and nanny now all live together at Brideshead and Seb’s whereabouts aren’t known to them. Cordy is away nursing (the model for Cordy also did a lot of this nursing on foreign shores lark though in different locales and also incidentally loved the hunt (as Cordy did in the series) – in the case of the model she was still Master of the Hounds for a hunt when she died in 2005 just a year before all hunting in England of the traditional sort was banned).

Chapter 10 - A Twitch Upon the Thread

Here there is more on grace and yet again this refers to the quote from the Father Brown story related by the Marchioness all those years before. The twitch is ‘upon the thread’ of the aforementioned baited Catholic hook. It’s interesting that he makes the least likable character the most pious and also meaningful for the story considering that he became quite pious himself before writing this novel just before WWII that he wanted to serve as a Christian apologetic of a kind. I guess this just serves as a reminder that all humans are faulty (perhaps especially the pious ones). He was often regarded as an unpleasant person himself in his later years. He also knew this however and often asked people to imagine how much worse he would be if he wasn’t a Catholic (or perhaps if he wasn’t as pious).

Divorces are apparently amicably coming through after a couple of years and marriage seems possible for the two heathens. This episode is all about the fountain and it’s quite farcical. One minute at the fountain they are lovers discussing the magic of their affair and longing to be wed (secularly, naturally), the next they are inside and a ‘bloody insensitive’ remark by Bridey in the circumstances at dinner (per Charles – about them living in sin and hence that Bridey’s middle class fiancée Mrs Muspratt would be uncomfortable staying under the same roof as them in response to a suggestion by Julia that she come to Brideshead) stirs up Julia’s lapsed Catholic guilt so badly that she goes into hysterics and finally lashes out at Charles (back at the fountain again). Charles even remarks in the dialogue about the dramatic and farcical nature of the continual fountain scenes (there’s one final one) and that doesn’t go down especially well with Julia either. Julia’s baited hook is certainly being twitched but is it pulling Charles along with her? Not a bit of it! Not yet at any rate. Waugh wants to make them all suffer some more. They fight some more and make up some more but it’s a bloody business. Charles escapes back to Bayswater (Evelyn also as needed often escaped back to his father’s home from the rest of his life (and in his case also his mother’s – Charles’s mother had died but Evelyn's hadn't died so early)).

Then there are episodes of billiards being played with ‘Boy’ (his ex-wife’s brother) and time with Rex shooting the breeze discussing life before we return to the important stuff of Charles getting news of Seb from Cordy, who he hasn’t seen for twelve years and is newly returned from her ministrations in Civil War Spain. Cordy and Charles also visit nanny. Seb is apparently in Tunis and getting into absinthe. He’d lost Kurt in Greece and followed him to Germany before finally losing him again to a concentration camp and suicide.

Chapter 11 - Brideshead Revisited

This is the culminating chapter meditating on the results of grace, the responsibilities of grace and the return to Eden (not a material but a spiritual return).

It’s all very to the point but yet it’s drawn out because it’s about the death and final reconciliation with God of a sinner, Lord Marchmain. He has finally returned to England (with Cara, his mistress) now that his wife is dead and war is almost upon Europe and he is dying himself. He makes the sign of the cross (his very last ever gesture) when being given the last rites that killed him and everybody including Charles appears to be very impressed. Clearly Charles now understands why Julia needs to give marriage with him up (the very thing she most wants) for her God. Waugh’s own actual conversion apparently owed something to witnessing something very like this scene of a man irreligious in life returning to Roman Catholicism at the very last possible time in his life.

Finally we are returned again to the wartime re-acquaintance of Charles as a soldier with Brideshead and a final act of conversion in the chapel, now no longer a family chapel but a chapel being used by soldiers. Nanny is still there and Julia has been made the mistress of the house by her father but is away along with Cordy helping in the war effort. Sebastian has probably also died and Bridey and Mrs Muspratt are, of course, elsewhere too (either due to the war or Mrs Muspratt’s middle class sensibilities). Madresfield Court was never used by the army as it was being held in reserve should the princesses Elizabeth and Margaret be required to depart London due to the blitz (or occupation, perhaps).

So why is it a great novel? Because it was able to turn an autobiographical novel into a specious argument for Christianity while bring so many issues of the time into fine relief.