Week 5: Letters 17–22 — Love, Sex, and Marriage

1.In Letter 17, Screwtape discusses the demonic strategy around gluttony — and surprises us by focusing not on gross excess but on what he calls 'the gluttony of Delicacy': the fussy, demanding, never-satisfied pickiness that is all about self rather than nourishment. Have you ever recognized gluttony in this more subtle form — in food, entertainment, comfort, or attention?

2.When the Patient falls in love with a Christian woman, Screwtape is deeply unsettled. He describes her as surrounded by 'a whole battalion of Enemy influences' — genuine prayer, practical charity, honest friendships. What does this portrait of a godly person suggest about what spiritual health actually looks like in practice?

3.In Letter 18, Screwtape gives a blistering analysis of how hell has corrupted the human experience of romantic love by encouraging people to conflate 'being in love' (an emotional state) with love itself (a commitment and a practice). He wants the Patient to believe that love is only real when it feels overwhelming.