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The Screwtape Letters Analysis

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Real versus Real
C. S. Lewis’ The Screwtape Letters tells the story of Screwtape, a devil in Hell, writing letters to his nephew, Wormwood, who is trying to guide a patient towards Hell over God and Heaven. Lewis has in other works described his thoughts on subjectivism and an objective truth as well as how an objective truth is better than subjectivism. Lewis’ ideas about subjectivism are shown in his non-fictional works, such as The Abolition of Man, in which Lewis describes how an objective truth is better than subjectivism. However, in The Screwtape Letters, Lewis is describing the views of the devil, and therefore the descriptions most often become the opposite of Lewis’ beliefs. Yet, in some circumstances an objective truth can apply …show more content…

Bring us back food, or be food yourself” (Lewis 272), Screwtape sees Hell as the only realistic place and his views of realism within Hell is what can convert a patient away from being blinded by the goodness of Heaven. A patient seeing children playing on the streets during wartime is blinded by the fantasy of religion and needs to be clarified by the realism of Hell. According to Screwtape, war and death is the reality, and if Wormwood can make his patient see this worldview, then he can covert him. Another component to the realism of Hell is the fact that Wormwood has to fulfill his job of bringing back the patient towards Hell; otherwise he will become food himself. According to Screwtape, this view shows how realistic Hell is and how an objective truth applies as rules and laws within Hell. Despite the fact that Screwtape argues that Hell is the only real place, Lewis has a counterargument in his The Great Divorce, in which Heaven is described as the realest place of all (Lewis 504). Screwtape only sees the negative side of realism, which is why Lewis does not agree with his arguments of war and death as the only component of

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