Almost 70 years later, 'Screwtape' continues to enthrall
C.S. Lewis drew inspiration for letters from Hitler
Betsy Woodruff
Issue date: 2/12/09 Section: Arts
The Sunday morning after C.S. Lewis heard Adolph Hitler speak on the radio, he didn't pay attention to the sermon in church. Instead, he thought about the diabolically entrancing speech he had listened to the previous night - and what good subject material for a book it would make.
And so he concocted idea for "The Screwtape Letters."
"So in a sense, it's not just Satan that's being satirized, but it's Adolf Hitler and any evil tempter who's strangely persuasive," said Michael Ward, a world-renowned Lewis scholar at Cambridge University and author of "Planet Narnia."
"The Screwtape Letters" was originally published in 1942. It records the letters of a demon named Screwtape to his apprentice Wormwood, in which he advises him on how to effectively tempt a young man living in Europe during World War II.
Writing the story presented a significant moral challenge for Lewis.
"He had to twist his own mind into a kind of satanic shape in order to see everything from below," said Ward. "Imaginatively and morally, it required him to immerse himself in a world of 'dust, grit, thirst and itch.' "
Lewis said the book should be counterbalanced by a story on angelic correspondence, but he never wrote one; he believed that writing in the voice of an angel wasimpossible.
The story quickly won popularity with both American and European audiences. And it played a key role in the formation of Lewis's U.S. reputation, Ward said. Five years after its publication, Time magazine put Lewis on its cover with a picture of a devil and an angel on each shoulder.
The book is a diabolical take on the genre of Christian inspirational writings.
"As a very literary man, Lewis was deeply immersed in all kinds of writings, including devotional texts about spiritual temptations," Ward said. "He was just giving his own very popular and amusing spin on that type of writing."
Another example of Lewis's inspiration by traditional literary conventions comes when Screwtape has to dictate to his undersecretary, Toadpipe, because he cannot write since he has turned into a giant centipede. Many medieval writers believed that devils were so evil that they could not maintain their shape.
Lewis's own experience with letter-writing - he wrote thousands - helped make "The Screwtape Letters" convincing, Ward said.
"He knew the value of the epistolary form - was a master of it himself," he said. "That's one of the reasons why the book is so good."
Those who enjoy "The Screwtape Letters" may also be interested in Lewis's short essay "Screwtape Proposes a Toast," which satirizes the over-estimation of the value of democracy. Lewis also wrote a book in a similar form called "Letters to Malcolm," which discusses prayer.
And so he concocted idea for "The Screwtape Letters."
"So in a sense, it's not just Satan that's being satirized, but it's Adolf Hitler and any evil tempter who's strangely persuasive," said Michael Ward, a world-renowned Lewis scholar at Cambridge University and author of "Planet Narnia."
"The Screwtape Letters" was originally published in 1942. It records the letters of a demon named Screwtape to his apprentice Wormwood, in which he advises him on how to effectively tempt a young man living in Europe during World War II.
Writing the story presented a significant moral challenge for Lewis.
"He had to twist his own mind into a kind of satanic shape in order to see everything from below," said Ward. "Imaginatively and morally, it required him to immerse himself in a world of 'dust, grit, thirst and itch.' "
Lewis said the book should be counterbalanced by a story on angelic correspondence, but he never wrote one; he believed that writing in the voice of an angel wasimpossible.
The story quickly won popularity with both American and European audiences. And it played a key role in the formation of Lewis's U.S. reputation, Ward said. Five years after its publication, Time magazine put Lewis on its cover with a picture of a devil and an angel on each shoulder.
The book is a diabolical take on the genre of Christian inspirational writings.
"As a very literary man, Lewis was deeply immersed in all kinds of writings, including devotional texts about spiritual temptations," Ward said. "He was just giving his own very popular and amusing spin on that type of writing."
Another example of Lewis's inspiration by traditional literary conventions comes when Screwtape has to dictate to his undersecretary, Toadpipe, because he cannot write since he has turned into a giant centipede. Many medieval writers believed that devils were so evil that they could not maintain their shape.
Lewis's own experience with letter-writing - he wrote thousands - helped make "The Screwtape Letters" convincing, Ward said.
"He knew the value of the epistolary form - was a master of it himself," he said. "That's one of the reasons why the book is so good."
Those who enjoy "The Screwtape Letters" may also be interested in Lewis's short essay "Screwtape Proposes a Toast," which satirizes the over-estimation of the value of democracy. Lewis also wrote a book in a similar form called "Letters to Malcolm," which discusses prayer.
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