In the second part of his commentary on Waugh’s Brideshead Revisited, Dr. White continues with his analysis of the characters and main plot lines, while he illustrates his assessments with skillfully read excerpts. It is a novel figuratively without fathers, White maintains, as he discusses the bleakness of Charles’ youth and the abandonment of Sebastian, a tortured soul who nevertheless is the central character of Book One. Lord and Lady Marchmain, Julia, Bridie, Cordelia, and others are all brought to life with Dr. White’s reading.
Dr. White continues his introduction to T. S. Eliot by exploring the poet’s somewhat rootless youth. Though an American by birth, Eliot was never comfortable for long in one spot –- or in one country. At age 17 he graduated from Harvard after only three years, and shortly thereafter left America for Europe where he continued to move frequently from country to country. In fact, much of The Wasteland was written while Eliot lived in Switzerland. White further posits that the poem, unlike much of its contemporary work, was far from what was considered the “romantic vision” of its day, dealing as it does with the world’s fascination for and love of death.
Dr. White opens Part One of his commentary on “Art and Architecture” with a description of a large private estate and the castle that dominates it, the castle we come to know as Brideshead. From there White delves into Waugh the young artist in the 20s who loved anything “modern,” even Picasso. White explores the art movements of the times, and broadens his commentary to include a comparison of art and photography and how those creative endeavors influenced Waugh the writer. White maintains that the decay of Brideshead was an architectural parallel to the apostasy of England.
In general remarks about T. S. Eliot and the factors that inspired him to write The Wasteland, Dr. White draws some comparisons to his (White’s) American education, which he considered his own “wasteland” in many regards, and likens it to the barren culture described in Eliot’s epic poem. Though White fondly recalls the teacher that he credits with being responsible for his becoming a Shakespearian scholar and authority, he laments that only an American –– in this case Eliot –– could have written The Wasteland, discarded elements of which Eliot later used to write The Hollow Men.
Dr. White concludes Part Two of his commentary on “Art and Architecture” by describing how Waugh’s love for baroque art as a young man was reflected in the character of Charles Ryder the painter. White also points up the impact art had on Ryder’s love affair with Julia, a liaison he characterizes as a long, adulterous, sinful relationship. And in spite of his distaste for television in general, White heaps effusive praise on the Masterpiece Theatre production of Waugh’s classic opus, Brideshead Revisited.
Dr. White’s concluding remarks about T. S. Eliot include a reading of a portion of Ash Wednesday, a poem that in White’s analysis concerns a soul struggling towards Christ’s truth. Also, it is a poem filled with references to Mary, Christ’s blessed mother. Dr. White describes The Fourth Quartet as well, a poem that Eliot wrote toward the end of his career, a time during which he also wrote a series of plays. One of these. Murder in the Cathedral, dealt with Thomas Becket and was once staged on the very altar where Becket’s death took place. White closes the series with a description of Eliot’s marriages and a Q and A session.
