Poking around the internet, I found a great series of posts that Fr. Longenecker wrote back in February after watching the British television production of Brideshead Revisited. Though I’ve never seen the production, I’ve read the book a couple of times and love it. His reflections, mostly focusing on character and theme, stand apart from the television show and are of general interest to anyone who has read the book. He has some great insights into Bridey in particular, a character I’ve always had problems with. There is some good discussion in the comments as well.
Here’s a selection, from the entry on Charles Ryder:
If Lord Marchmain holds in himself all of the Flyte offspring, a friend has pointed out that Charles does as well. Sebastian the degenerate is in Charles. Julia the adulterer is in Charles, Bridey the rational, detached observer is in Charles, and in the end Cordelia, the believer is in Charles too.
Charles, coming from his own dysfunctional family, is a tabula rasa—a blank slate: a canvas waiting for the paint and the artist. At Oxford he is the impressionable, naive student waiting for life to happen. What happens to him is the whole vast and complicated family life of Brideshead. That he becomes an architectural painter—who first makes his name painting Marchmain House—shows that his whole life has become a meditation on the fate of Brideshead.
Some have seen Lady Marchmain as a symbol of Mother Church. I don’t agree. I think, instead, that Brideshead itself is the symbol of Mother Church and therefore Christ himself whose body the Church is. Without reading too much into it, could Mr Covington’s suggestion be true that the name ‘Brideshead’ itself is chosen for the fact that the Church is the Bride of Christ and Christ is her head? (Covington is an English teacher at St Joseph’s Catholic School) Does Nanny (who mysteriously never ages) stand for the Mother of God? There she is—always up in the attic close to God—as the one who prays for them and is the perpetual mother of them all.
If this is so, then Charles’ encounter with the Flyte clan is an encounter with the Church—in all its variety. There you find everyone, from the saints: Nanny Hawkins, Father Mackay and Cordelia to the sinners: Sebastian, Julia, Anthony Blanche, Lord Marchmain and Cara; to the self righteous religious ones—Lady Marchmain, Bridey, Mrs Muspratt, Mr Samgrass and even the boors and imbeciles: Rex Mottram and Francis Xavier the pig.
Read the rest here, as well as other posts on Lord Marchmain, Cordelia, Bridey, and Sebastian.
I’v always wanted to try shepherd’s pie but I can’t imagine eating it with ground meat as I usually see it. I’d love to try it with chunks of meat though – or shredded meat. Ground meat though just makes me think of a soupy burger.
Oh yes, I completely agree about the ground beef. With the exception of lasagna, I just don’t like casseroles with ground beef. The minced lamb was quite lovely. I cut it up very small, but it still had a little chew to it. I think it makes all the difference.
Sounds delicious! If only I didn’t have a husband who loathes cheese :(.
Oh that is sad.
However, you could easily omit the cheese from this recipe; i don’t think it would suffer too much.