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| This is a monument to the fallen soldiers in WWII from Christ Church at Oxford (this monument was right at the entrance to the cathedral). The beginning and end of Brideshead Revisited is set in the midst of WWII. It was interesting to see the correlation between war and the need for religion. |
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| This is Christ Church's quadrangle. I loved seeing this place because it really helped me to visualize Charles and Sebastian's world as young students at Oxford. |
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| This is the cathedral at Christ Church. Even though the church is technically protestant, the architecture and the alter (especially the crucifix in the middle) strongly suggests a Catholic background. This paradox reminds me of the constant struggle in Brideshead between the comparative "ease" of the Church of England and the strong hand of the Catholic church. |
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| This sink belongs to the lady of the house in Eltham Palace. The palace originally belonged to the Tudors. A wealthy couple purchased the estate in the first half of the twentieth century and decided to renovate the palace. The lady of the house claimed the Tudor rose as her own and had it engraved on her faucets. This reminds me of how the Flyte family took the ruins of an ancient castle and built a new estate on the property. A mix of old and new––a constant struggle for identity. |
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| This is Hampton Court Palace––the home of many royals through the ages. Each dynasty added on to the estate, establishing their own distinct style. On the left is the baroque style: symmetrical, light, and orderly. On the right is a continuation of the same building, but in the Tudor style. This helped me visualize Charles' conversion to the baroque. |
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| A bonus picture I found after class that really explained how the architecture reflected the religion and monarchy of the time. |
Aubrey, you have a great eye for details! I am so impressed that you took notice of the Tudor roses on the bathroom faucets. The timeless nature of the concept of the struggle for identity is quite interesting. It seems as though the fight for an identity of wealth, prestige, and power has been and will continue to be an eternal battle.
ReplyDeleteThis week's blog was terrific! It's interesting that not only ophans like Jane but also "outsider" elites like the Flytes search for identity, too, eh? So glad you discovered the Baroque Story. I think this small 15 min show is highly informative.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed the photograph of the sink because it took the architectural style beyond the exterior of each location we visited and showed how the interiors of each place changed drastically over time. It perfectly exemplifies the correlation between this week's trips and Brideshead Revisited.
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