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Copywork
About This Passage
This sentence shows Screwtape's trick in one vivid list: squeaky boots, double chins, and odd clothes make the man decide a whole religion is 'ridiculous.' Copying the list of small, silly details teaches a young writer how concrete pictures carry a big, unfair idea.
Provided that any of those neighbours sing out of tune, or have boots that squeak, or double chins, or odd clothes, the patient will quite easily believe that their religion must therefore be somehow ...
Full copywork activity with handwriting lines available in the complete study guide.
Discussion Questions
Narration Prompt
Tell someone what Screwtape's second letter says, in order. When you reach the part about the neighbours in the next pew, slow down: what does Screwtape want the man to notice about them, and what do you think about it?
Discussion Questions
- Screwtape tells Wormwood that the man will decide a neighbour's religion is 'ridiculous' if the neighbour sings out of tune or has squeaky boots. Why does Screwtape want the man to judge people by such small outside things? Which detail in the letter helps you decide?
- The man has just become a Christian, but he feels proud and looks down on his neighbours at church. Was the man being fair to his neighbours, or was he being unkind? How do you know, from what Screwtape says in the letter?
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Vocabulary Builder
Item 1
To change from one belief or religion to another.
Item 2
Not clear; hard to see or understand.
Item 3
Worn out and in poor condition.
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Critical Thinking
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