From the Bookshelf of Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge…

The Screwtape Letters

C.S. Lewis

Start date: April 13, 2016

Finish date: May 10, 2016

Discussion: 2016 Challenge prompts

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2016 Challenge prompts

A book with a protagonist who has your occupation...
By Danah · 8 posts · 184 views

last updated Jan 27, 2017 08:22AM

The first book you see in a bookstore
By Juanita · 64 posts · 492 views

last updated Dec 29, 2016 04:24PM

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What Members Thought

Apr 24, 2017 Christine H rated it liked it

Lewis is so clever, intelligent, and insightful - it makes me sad that he was beholden to irrational beliefs that inspired him to ignore the logical conclusions of his inquiries, and sometimes even to advocate for truly monstrous ideas.

The good:

Screwtape's observations are keenest when they touch on human nature and the pleasure or misery it can bring to oneself and others. The passive-aggressiveness that can reside in "selflessness," the danger of assuming that romantic infatuation alone can s Lewis is so clever, intelligent, and insightful - it makes me sad that he was beholden to irrational beliefs that inspired him to ignore the logical conclusions of his inquiries, and sometimes even to advocate for truly monstrous ideas.

The good:

Screwtape's observations are keenest when they touch on human nature and the pleasure or misery it can bring to oneself and others. The passive-aggressiveness that can reside in "selflessness," the danger of assuming that romantic infatuation alone can sustain a long-term relationship, and the paradoxical human need for both novelty and familiarity - these are examples of the most thought-provoking and useful passages.

The bad:

By writing from the satirical point of view of a demon, Lewis certainly brings some humor to the tale. But this also allows him to dodge the Problem of Evil and other logical gaps. From the demons' vantage, Yahweh is understandably inscrutable. But if one steps back, it's pretty disturbing how much the "loving" deity likes to mess with the heads of its followers.

In fact, I found it really shocking that Lewis, who seems genuinely interested in morality and benevolence, explicitly venerates infant death as one of the greatest goods on Earth.

And of course, he's completely a product of his time. His language is unrelentingly sexist, and his ideas don't contradict that theme.

He sometimes seems less philosophically reflective than butthurt that trendy people consider him passe. In the later "Screwtape Proposes a Toast," he goes full Grumpy Old Man, decrying kids these days. His rant dovetails perfectly with today's "everyone getting a trophy is ruining civilization" complaints. Except that his objections go far beyond soccer trophies. He literally argues against free universal education, worrying that the "dunces" are dragging down the properly intelligent (i.e. rich enough for private school) students.

The upshot:

All in all this was worth reading because Lewis is so influential, and he does offer some very clever insights into human foibles. But it was neither as entertaining nor as intelligent as I would have expected. ...more

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Jan 10, 2010 Nicole rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2010

CS Lewis said something to the effect that this was the fastest book he ever wrote, but he couldn't stand himself having the evil thoughts flowing out of himself. As I am not of a particularly religious nature, I found this book to be a quick, somewhat interesting read, but not all that horrifying. ...more

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Aug 14, 2007 J.D. rated it really liked it · review of another edition

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Shelves: readauthorsh-n, ebook, library

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Shelves: fiction

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Jan 20, 2016 Melissa Wiebe rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: christian-literature, classics, fiction, classical-literature, classics-club, c-s-lewis, 2016, satire, apologetics

Mar 16, 2016 Kendra added it · review of another edition

Shelves: own

Jun 09, 2016 Ali marked it as to-read · review of another edition

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Feb 28, 2017 Haley rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: regarding-faith, books-that-inspire-me, religion, haleysfavorites, holocaust-wwii, sketchy-characters, witty, quotable, merry-old-england, theology

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