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Copywork
About This Passage
This short, blunt sentence carries the chapter's surprising idea: hard times make people honest about life's shortness. Copying its plain, declarative shape teaches a young writer how a simple sentence can land a heavy truth without any decoration.
In wartime not even a human can believe that he is going to live forever.
Full copywork activity with handwriting lines available in the complete study guide.
Discussion Questions
Narration Prompt
Tell someone what Screwtape's fifth letter says, in order. When you reach the part about how war does not always help the devils, slow down: what worries Screwtape about the war, and what do you think about it?
Discussion Questions
- Screwtape scolds Wormwood for being 'drunk' with joy over the war instead of doing his job. Why does Screwtape say 'duty comes before pleasure' even for a devil? Which detail in the letter helps you decide?
- Screwtape tells Wormwood it is even worse for the devils when a suffering person 'finally escapes' by dying brave and ready. Why are the devils unhappy when people face hard times with courage instead of fear? How do you know, from what Screwtape says in the letter?
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Vocabulary Builder
Item 1
Something you ought to do because it is right.
Item 2
A feeling of happiness or enjoyment.
Item 3
Pain or hardship that a person goes through.
+ 5 more vocabulary words in the complete study guide
Critical Thinking
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