Just finished Evelyn Waugh's novel Brideshead Revisited. The novel tells the narrative of Charles Ryder, an Oxford student and later soldier, and his relations with the aristocratic Marchmain family. Through this narrative, the novel analyzes the nature of love and religion in society. Set in England in the 1920s through 1940s, the novel centers around Charles, his strong friendships and romances, and namely conflicts between differing doctrines of faith.
The Marchmain family consists of varying degrees of Catholics---in other words, some members of the family (i.e. Cordelia & Brideshead) are highly devout members of the Church while others seem to connect with the religion of their upbringing & yet are referred to as "half-heathen" (i.e. Sebastian & Julia). Charles---the narrator and protagonist of the novel---interestingly enough, is an agnostic. The novel presents an interesting study of the role of faith (or lack thereof) in individual lives & in relationships with others. Initially, it would seem Charles, as an agnostic, would be the most perceptive character because he is free from the bias of a specified religious worldview. Yet, at the close of the novel, the Catholic faith, which many of the characters resisted earlier in the novel, seems to be the saving grace & psychological focus of most of the characters. For instance, Lord Marchmain crosses himself on his deathbed after refusing to conform to the faith for many years, even fleeing to Venice to escape it and his wife. On his deathbed, even Charles kneels and prays for him ask for forgiveness. Julia, the eldest Marchmain daughter, realizes near the end of the novel, that she is a sinner (she has an extramarital affair with the narrator) & reestablishes the role of faith in her life. Sebastian, who struggles with alcoholism, remains under the care of monks at the close of the novel. The Catholic faith is more than a tradition for the Marchmain family, it is a highly perceptive worldview & the spiritual center of the novel and it's characters. It guides their actions, making them people of high moral gravity.
Earlier in the summer I read James Joyce's A Portrait of the Artist as A Young Man, which also largely focused on Catholicism, yet in a divergent manner. In the novel, Stephen Dedalus, the protagonist, grows up in the Church & later in his early teenage years, strays away from it, seeking not the truth, but desire. Stephen realizes the sinful nature of his actions & asks for repentance, becoming so devout, he almost enters the priesthood. His experience, in his realization of his sin & return to faith, can closely paralleled with Julia's in Brideshead Revisted. Yet, Stephen doesn't enter the priesthood & instead seeks his true destiny and calling: as an artist. The novel chronicles his return & then re-abandonment of his faith.
Portrait differs from Brideshead in the nations in which each story are set: highly-Catholic Ireland & highly-Protestant England. Catholicism is, in Ireland, part of the national society & deeply engrained in many aspects of the culture. Thus, it shapes not only Stephen's (and also Joyce's) spiritual identity, but also his national identity. The focus of the novel then becomes less concerned with the conflict between Stephen as an artist & his faith but between Stephen the individual & Stephen's national identity. In England, however, the Marchmain family is part of the Catholic minority. Catholicism is different from the norm in England and thus, sets them apart. Charles himself is perplexed and in awe of the life the family leads, a large focus being its religious beliefs and practices. But, because the Marchmain family is in the minority, this strengthens the argument FOR their faith, demonstrating its importance in their lives. In short, Joyce more or less argues against the faith while Waugh (a convert to Catholicism himself) argues for it. Yet, both novels demonstrate the role of the Catholic faith in the lives of the characters, offering two different, yet equally illuminated perspectives on faith & human nature.
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