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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Why does Screwtape favor prayer for the soul?

2. How does Lewis suggest the modern person avoid gluttony?

3. What is the wine of fiends to be sipped eternally?

4. When does humor always work toward a destructive purpose?

5. What type of friendships should Wormwood encourage to the patient?

Short Essay Questions

1. Relating to religious bodies, what does Screwtape say has proven very useful for producing malice over the centuries?

2. The High Command has decided it is better that devils not reveal themselves. How does Screwtape explain the positive impact of that decision?

3. Lewis elaborates on the traditional version of gluttony as over-consumption of food or drink. What does he describe as the modern forms of gluttony and its effects?

4. Screwtape tells Wormwood the English people are hateful in the abstract but kindly in the concrete. How does he suggest Wormwood use this information regarding the patient?

5. Wormwood sees a dry spell in the patient's faith as a totally positive development. Why does Screwtape see this as a shortcoming of Wormwood's training and not necessarily a positive?

6. What does Screwtape explain about the dynamics of a person who is church shopping?

7. How does Screwtape tell Wormwood to use imaginings now that war is upon the patient?

8. Lewis writes "...indeed the safest road to Hell is the gradual one--the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts." How does this prose relate to the human condition?

9. How does Screwtape recommend that Wormwood prevent humans from using their reasoning?

10. Why does Screwtape caution Wormwood that innocent laughter of joy and fun is not good for the devils?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Human progress is a chronicle of change in virtually all aspects of living to the extent that people seem to think change is not only inevitable and necessary, but also desirable. Elaborate on Lewis' premise that acquired knowledge can be lost from generation to generation because of rapid change. Provide examples of whether this is a favorable outcome.

Essay Topic 2

Lewis contends the human mind can be shifted to focus thinking on an abstract level as a means to avoid having to deal with the reality right in front of a person. Expand on the question whether this reality to abstraction is a permanent feature of American society as it relates to political campaigns.

Essay Topic 3

Lewis relates that scholarly analysis tends to categorize and put into context to the point where the truth and value of a work is diminished or lost. Explore this idea in terms of modern thinking where context and category have gained importance, while content is not appreciated for itself until it "fits" somewhere. Is this modern thinking actually an outcome of marketing and sales, such as in the music business?

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