A sweet, moving story in Brideshead Revisited

After a couple duds and a few near-good ones, I finally found a book I thoroughly enjoyed in Evelyn Waugh’s Brideshead Revisited, though it ended much different than what I expected. The story follows the life of Charles Ryder in his dealings with the Marchmain family.

Charles is a young, somewhat sheltered man new to college at Oxford when he meets Sebastian. Sebastian is the kind of guy everyone likes, he is outgoing and friendly to all, and Charles is smitten in a bro way. While visiting Sebastian’s home, Charles realizes Sebastian is at odds with his family. Sebastian’s father has left the Marchmain mansion (Brideshead Castle) and is living with his mistress in Italy. His extranged wife Lady Marchmain, a devout Catholic, remains in the home with their other children, eldest boy Brideshead and younger daughters Julia and Cordelia. Sebastian has always fought against his mom and her Catholic faith, even asking Charles if he has joined his (Sebastian’s) mother against him. Charles says he will remain in Sebastian’s corner.

At this point I thought the novel would be about their friendship, but this was not to be. Lady Marchmain definitely recruits Charles to “join her side” by lavishing him with praise and prying him with questions about Sebastian’s life at college. This needles Sebastian to the point that he begins drinking heavily. Much of the rest of the novel revolves around the family’s faith, and how each family member deals with it, having been raised one way and learning how to mesh that in with their day to day lives. Sebastian eventually quits college (is kicked out really) and flees to Africa. He settles in at a monastary where he continues to drink (again, snared by faith that he fights), and whereas he was a main character through much of the novel to this point, he is hardly seen again.

The novel skips forward a few years. Charles has married but is indifferent towards his wife and kids. He runs into Julia, who had also married in the intervening years, to a man who is far different than she had previously thought. The two enter into a relationship, and make plans to divorce their spouses, to which everyone consents. However, about this time Lady Marchmain has died, and the Lord returns home to die in his family estate. He has turned from the Catholic faith many years ago, but retuns to the faith on his deathbed. Though the divorces are now final, Julia, who sees that even her father can return to God at the end, decides she cannot enter a second marriage (against the Catholic faith). The epilogue has Charles years later, during World War II as an officer, being encamped at the Brideshead estate. Though the family is not there, as they are off doing their parts in the war, he sees the family chapel has been reopened for the soldier’s uses.

I wouldn’t be surprised to learn author Waugh was Catholic, as the struggle of life vs faith becomes a main theme in the second half of the novel. His characters feel very real and whole. He makes you feel for each of the characters, I was extremely moved by what become of Sebastian’s life, and almost heartbroken that the likeable Charles ends up alone in the end. The style of writing has an almost lyrical and sweet rhythm. It is easy to read while staying very detailed. A very enjoyable book.