C.S. Lewis Goes to Hell

I was first introduced to C.S. Lewis and The Screwtape Letters (TSL) in 1998. I desperately needed relief by engaging in imaginative and fictional literature because of my numerous hours in the library reading and analyzing numerous books and articles for the completion of my first master's degree. Lewis provided such relief. On a lovely family road trip from our home in the Twin Cities to Oregon, my wife, two kids, and I listened to the audiobook version of TSL narrated by actor John Cleese. Lewis’s prose and literary depth mesmerized me. This 27-hour drive afforded plenty of opportunities to absorb and reflect on this singular work.

From the outset, Lewis’s words transported me into the imaginary world of devils and angels, the supernatural, and the unseen spiritual forces at work. Yet, my reflections on the novel regarded it as an innovative, entertaining work of fiction, resulting in my indifference to the possible meanings of such a story.

Summary of The Screwtape Letters

The story of The Screwtape Letters takes place as an epistolary novel. It consists of 31 letters written by a senior-level devil named Screwtape to his nephew, a junior tempter named Wormwood. In the novel's preface, Lewis notes that he surreptitiously stumbled upon these letters.

These letters are an allegorical satire that centers on Screwtape, in hell, absurdly commanding Wormwood, who is invisible on Earth. In the story's beginning sections, the reader learns that Screwtape provides Wormwood with detailed strategies for tempting a young man, the Patient, to move away from God—"the Enemy,” as Screwtape calls him—and embrace sin.

If they are successful, they will secure another soul for hell and earn the delight of “Our Father Below,” Satan. One cannot help but picture Screwtape in his one-sided demands remembering Charlie Chaplin’s satirical farce on Adolf Hitler in The Great Dictator. Throughout these numerous letters, Screwtape instructs Wormwood to impede the Patient from personal contemplation and reflection whenever possible.

Screwtape wants to keep the patient in a stupor of busy nonsense since contemplative reasoning and rationality will only cause him to grow in his newfound Christian faith. Wormwood is also advised to prevent the Patient from considering Christianity’s relevant and potent history and instead influenced to obsess over the faults and weaknesses of his peers and family, especially his mother.

Screwtape’s unreasonable advice steers Wormwood to move the patient to concentrate exclusively on vice, failure, and the material realm and ignore morality, human goodness, and the spiritual world. In response to his uncle’s ongoing non-negotiables, Wormwood reports World War II breaking out in Europe. This development prompts Screwtape to outline letters on trepidation, violence, and courage themes.

Surprisingly, Screwtape explains that war can be good or bad for their cause. Regarding the former, war shakes people with fear, which causes them to turn to sin and sensuality. However, the latter can be counterproductive because it prompts people to pause, consider their mortality, and live more piously. Screwtape tells Wormwood that it is no matter whether the Patient becomes a pacifist or patriot, if he is extreme in his beliefs, he will ignore God and engage in sin.

During these letters, the Patient ebbs and flows in his Christian faith, but when he enlists in the war and then dies on the battlefield of England, he turns to the welcoming embrace of God the Father.

Do yourself a favor and read TSL this summer - the ideal season to read...

A Watercolor-style Book Cover Painting of C.S. Lewis's The Screwtape Letters, AI-generated image using OpenAI’s DALL·E, June 10, 2025, created under direction of the author, in the author’s possession.

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