Gabrielle Hunt
19 April 2012
Outside Reading 5
The Screwtape Letters
Having heard the title of The
Screwtape Letters many times
before, I could not have avoided the preconceptions which formed themselves in
my head. They were somewhat blurred with my preconceptions of C.S. Lewis in
general and his nonfiction specifically, but had little to do with what the
book actually was.
The length was the first surprise, before I even opened the book.
The second was the format; I expected standard prose rather than this novel of
letters. Third, the pose of the narrator as a demonic figure shocked me,
because it was completely outside the range of general expectations which I had
cast upon this text. I later went back and read Lewis’ introduction, and the
three choices made perfect sense in his eyes. I appreciated his commentary
about the length especially. He felt that he had to immerse himself completely
in the character in order to put forth any semblance of a realistic persona.
Consequently, the novel was shorter than expected because of the incredibly
painful experience of being submerged in a completely and totally diabolical
character, on the opposite end of the spectrum from anything that could
possibly be good or innocent.
I will admit that I was appreciative, because even my brief
reading the text showed me enough unnecessary and unadulterated evil to last me
several lifetimes. My sister read only a few of the letters and promptly gave up
because of the nightmares it brought her. I considered the full impact of the
writing of this novel – a reading of a text is only a tiny fraction of the
total occupancy of the mind which the author experiences in his creation of the
story and his translation into recognizable words – and I admired Lewis for his
endurance; however short the novel, it would have been too much for me to
attempt to write from a similar standpoint.
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