Brideshead Revisited

Brideshead Revisited is a novel by Evelyn Waugh, first published in 1945. It has become well-known to modern audiences as a result of the ITV drama serialisation of 1981, produced by Granada Television. In a list of the 100 Greatest British Television Programmes drawn up by the British Film Institute in 2000, voted for by industry professionals, the adaptation was placed 10th. It attracted attention both for its gay overtones and because of Sebastian's affection for his teddy bear.

The Nature of the Relationship between Charles and Sebastian

One continuing controversy which has struck both readers of the novel and viewers of the miniseries was the question on the nature of Charles?s and Sebastian?s relationship; whether or not it is homosexual, and whether it is physical or merely emotional. The vast majority of analyses of the book, scholarly or not, make no mention of this question or only address it in passing. This is understandable since Charles? and Sebastian?s relationship is not the major theme of the book; by Waugh's own admission, the book is a trumpeting of the redemptive nature of God's grace. Nevertheless, the topic is of interest, due to its being a continuing source of discussion of readers of the novel and viewers of the miniseries.

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One side of the discussion interprets the relationship from the Freudian point of view, in which intentions are understood ultimately on terms of sex. From this point of view, Charles?s and Sebastian?s relationship is homosexual, whether or not it is physical. This would not be inconsistent with the general theme of the book, which is redemption. Waugh himself said that ?Charles's romantic affection for Sebastian is part due to the glitter of the new world Sebastian represents, part to the protective feeling of a strong towards a weak character, and part a foreshadowing of the love for Julia which is to be the consuming passion of his mature years.? The Catholic Church, to which Waugh was a convert, considers homosexual acts as contrary to the natural law. The transition from Charles?s homosexual relationship with Sebastian to his heterosexual relationship with Julia would be seen in the Catholic perspective as a step closer and in-line with this eventual conversion.

Related Topics:
Freudian - Point of view - Redemption - Heterosexual

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The other interpretation is that Charles and Sebastian had a passionate yet platonic relationship, an immature albeit strongly felt attachment which prefigures future heterosexual relationships. A passage in Brideshead Revisited has Lord Marchmain's mistress, Cara, talking to Charles of his relationship with Sebastian precisely in terms of this same-sex attachment; that it forms part in a process of emotional development typical to the English and the Germans.

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