“Be not deceived, Wormwood, our cause is never more in jeopardy than when a human, no longer desiring but still intending to do our Enemy's will, looks round upon a universe in which every trace of Him seems to have vanished, and asks why he has been forsaken, and still obeys.”



The Screwtape Letters has always been one of my favorites - who knows how many times I've read it over the years - but it is a difficult book to properly describe.

First of all, I should point out that it is very much a representation of C.S. Lewis' views on Christian theology. Second of all, it is a VERY deep book. In my opinion, this is not a book you would recommend to someone interested in learning more about Christianity, or even to a new Christian. Thirdly, this book is personally challenging and will likely make you feel uncomfortable - maybe even guilty. Lewis himself once said that the book was 'not fun' to write, but he wrote it anyways.

Clearly, the Screwtape Letters is nothing like Narnia, but it is a masterful piece of writing nonetheless. Lewis had an extraordinary sense of imagination and an incredibly thorough grasp of theology, which were both fully utilized in writing this book. The 'book' is actually composed of multiple letters written by Screwtape, a senior demon who acts as a mentor to his nephew, Wormwood. We only read Screwtape's letters, but can surmize Wormwood's communiques from his uncle's responses and suggestions.

This isn't like Dante's Inferno, as in a portrayal of the afterlife, but is instead a contemporary satire that reveals many of the temptations and myths that Christians fall prey to. This is represented through the techniques and tricks-of-the-trade that Screwtape suggests are ways that Wormwood can make his 'patient' (an Englishman living in the 1930s) turn away from the 'Enemy'. Lewis' use of this 'correspondence' style of writing is brilliant - it is like the readers are privy to the enemy's top-secret communications.

What struck me the most about Screwtape is how different he acts from the stereotypical 'devil' who tries to tempt you into committing extravagantly evil deeds. Instead, Screwtape suggests that a demon's primary goal is to befuddle and confuse the 'patient', making him apathetic and ignorant of the truth. In perhaps the most famous line of the entire book, he advises Wormwood that "the safest path to hell is the gradual one."

In the end, it is hard to do the book any justice by writing about it. It can almost be read as a devotional - it is honestly that deep and full of meaning! I highly recommend it as a challenging read that you will simply have to look at line-by-line.

"Reason is the natural order of truth; but imagination is the organ of meaning." - C. S. Lewis

"Did I kill the old hag? No, not the old hag--I killed myself!"

I read Fyodor Dostoyevsky's Crime and Punishment almost 7 years ago, and yet I still clearly remember the driving plot of the story. It's not because the plot was particularly groundbreaking or contained any hidden twists at the end - it's because Dostoyevsky did such a masterful job of capturing Raskolnikov's raw emotions as he battled with his guilt.

If you haven't read the book, you can always wiki the summary, but the main conflict in the story is really between the protagonist and himself. Dostoyevsky intended the character of Raskolnikov to represent the dangers of Russian nihilism, particularly its ambition to entrust society into the hands of elite intellectuals. Raskolnikov fancies himself as such an intellectual, and thinks that killing someone for their money would be justified by a sort of Darwinian 'the weak feed the strong' ideal.

Of course, once the deed is done, he quickly begins to lose his sanity as he struggles with the guilty part of his conscience that wants to confess to the crime. The poignant irony of the book is that this internal struggle is more the 'punishment' than Raskolnikov's eventual formal punishment (which actually acts as his redemption - spoiler alert!).

There were so many things I liked about this book - it was the first novel that I truly appreciated for its philosophical value (no, Shakespeare never really did it for me :p). Dostoyevsky's Devils (or The Possessed) is a pretty good read as well, but deals more with political issues, and isn't quite as captivating. Of course, I'd recommend giving Crime and Punishment a read, just try and find one of the more accessible translations. I think I'll finally reread it over Christmas - something to do on the 14 hour flight to the Phillippines :D

“Lying to ourselves is more deeply ingrained than lying to others” - Fyodor Dostoyevsky

I've been meaning to start this series for a while now, I just haven't had much time lately (well, I still don't have much time, but I succumbed to procrastination o_O).

I've literally read hundreds of books over the past 24 years of my bookwormish life - some mandatory, some recreational, some interesting, and some not so interesting. A choice few have had a particularly significant impact on my development as both a student and a human being, and this series is a retrospective reflection on some of these works. Of course, it goes without saying that the Bible has been the most influential 'book' in my life, but I don't think that will fit in a single post :).

I'll do my first book when I'm bored/distracted enough - Fyodor Dostoyevsky's "Преступление и наказание" ( ....what a weak attempt at subterfuge).