Letters 8-11

Well this week, I think the letters were quite knowlegeable about the human's way of thinking and living their lives. It if funny reading Screwtape's letters to his nephew about his human that he is trying to persuade because it makes me question if there really are little demons that persuade me to think a certain way. It is funny because the author knows how humans think and what they lust for and desire in life, that is often not what The Enemy wants us to think and want. I like when Screwtape discusses the differences between what The Enemy does during a human's undulation and what the devil does during that period. It seems true that God wants humans to be with him and be his sons, while the devil wants them to serve him and wants to draw them into himself. I also found that I think it is true that when a human is in a period or trough of dryness, it is easy for that human to be persuaded to follow his lusts and indulge in them because they are feeling low and are not thinking about the consequences. It is interesting that Screwtape explains this to Wormwood and how The Enemy will try to use the human's high points to persuade the human. Screwtape tells his nephew that if he tries to act like someone he is not infront of his new friends, it is possible that he will indeed become that way, and that Wormwood can even make the human take pleasure in knowing that he lives this dual life and the two sides of his life are inconsistent by exploiting his vanity. The last point that I thought interesting was the different kinds of laughter humans perform. Screwtape made the distinciton between joy, fun, joke-humor, and flippancy humor. I found this to be interesting because it is in a sense true and we do have different kinds of humor and laughs that the devils could possibly use against The Enemy and ourselves. I find the readings always to be quite humorous because it is almost silly, yet possible to imagine such devils reading our minds and influencing our thoughts and actions.