Classic Gay Love Story

It's not a gay love story, just a love story. First and last love. That is plain to see from every line and glance between Charles and Sebastian. So what if they are male, love knows no boundaries and as J. Krishnamurti said, is the most horrifying force in this world.

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BR and the novel Maurice (written 1914, but only published after the death of its - homosexual - author EM Forster) are interesting to compare (if you're interested). They both tell stories that begin with close friendships between Oxford/Cambridge undergraduates, and they're so similar that I a) believe they're BOTH about love AND sexual relations and b) it was not at all an unusual scenario ;)

Maurice and Clive are definitely a couple at university, where I believe this was quite tolerated, and it's only afterwards that Clive realizes he's not actually gay, denies having ever been gay, gets married etc. Maurice on the other hand has to come to terms with the fact that he is and never will be anything else and doesn't want to be anything else. There the parallel ends, but I think it's the same with Charles and Sebastian. For one of them, it was "just a phase", but it was love (consummated).

While Forster wanted to write about homosexuality, and Waugh did too, the latter saw it as part of a story that was actually about Catholic Faith, which was very important to him (his own conversion). The trouble is, the love story of Charles and Sebastian is by far the best bit. Indeed, it's so captivating, charming and magical that everything else, to me, always seemed tacked on to make a point I'm not very interested in. The adaptation, faithful as it is, suffers from the same problem. Sebastian is probably one of the most charismatic characters ever put on paper, and embodied perfectly by Anthony Andrews; as soon as he's left the centre stage, the story becomes lacklustre and rather dull. (Incidentally, I'm convinced Waugh drew on personal experience for the first part, the rest is pure fiction and well, lacks life.) That's why this stupid "forerunner" thing annoys me enormously - very unconvincing. Julia is so boring in comparison with her brother (although poor Diana Quick does her best).

So, I think, Charles is straight. He slept with (or certainly would have) with Sebastian, then he only sleeps with women, but he was in love with Sebastian, and later on he's only in love with the past. Because he's straight, he extended his love for his friend to everything connected with him.
Sebastian on the other hand is gay, and like other people pointed out, why would he be so tormented for most of his life if they hadn't actually done it (or certainly would have at some point)? Not an advertisement for the advantage of being Catholic by the way.

Brideshead is a classic gay love story, because if it wasn't for the gay LOVE between Charles and Sebastian, nobody would give two hoots for the STORY.

@ Red7Eric » Wed Dec 29 2004

Charles remarks during one or another of the scenes in "Et in Arcadia Ego" that his and Sebastian's activities while they were at Oxford were "high in the categories of grave sins." As a poster styled "Marcel Proust" remarks, the reference to their homosexuality is "blindingly obvious."

Not gay - you missed the entire point of the story.


"Don't ever let them catch you acting!" (Lillian Gish)