What happens in Letter XX – The Girl and Her Family of The Screwtape Letters?
In Letter XX, Screwtape advises Wormwood on how to take advantage of the Patient's new romantic relationship—particularly with the girl he loves, whom Screwtape looks down on with open disdain. The senior devil analyzes the girl's family with sharp detail: her mother is a cruel woman who conceals her tyranny behind a façade of Christian goodness. Screwtape tells Wormwood to observe this household closely, not to directly corrupt the Patient, but to use the sharp contrast between the girl's seemingly wholesome upbringing and the Patient's spiritual condition as a means of discouragement. He also focuses on the girl herself—her genuine faith, her cheerful demeanor, and her practical mindset—all of which pose a threat to Hell's agenda. Screwtape is clearly unsettled by her, admitting that she embodies the type of person the devils find hardest to manipulate. The letter concludes with Screwtape urging Wormwood to identify a way to undermine the relationship before it strengthens further and the Patient's virtue is solidified through her influence.
Analysis
Letter XX showcases Lewis's sharp satirical style, presenting a scathing view of vice through a character who admires it. Screwtape's portrayal of the girl's mother exemplifies this irony—her so-called "positive" domestic traits are shown to be tools of quiet destruction. Readers can recognize that Lewis is highlighting a very familiar human archetype. The mother's selfishness is particularly insidious because it is cloaked in the language of self-sacrifice.
In this letter, Lewis also defines virtue by what it is not. The girl is not described in sentimental terms; instead, Screwtape's begrudging and almost angry acknowledgment of her traits—her genuine goodness and lack of vanity—carries more significance than any traditional praise could. The devil's resentment effectively endorses her character in the reader's eyes.
The tone of the letter fluctuates between Screwtape's cold, bureaucratic strategy and moments of barely restrained anxiety. This tonal shift serves to remind us that Hell is not all-powerful. The motif of the domestic space as a spiritual battleground appears here as well: the family home is depicted not as a refuge but as a stage for conflicting influences. Lewis excels at transforming the ordinary—mealtimes, manners, household dynamics—into something of cosmic importance.
Key quotes from Letter XX – The Girl and Her Family
“She is one of those who would be even more dangerous dead.”
Screwtape concedes the girl's spiritual potency, acknowledging that martyrdom would only amplify her influence over the Patient.
“The whole house and garden are one vast obscenity.”
Screwtape reacts with visceral revulsion to the girl's family home, revealing that genuine domestic happiness is anathema to Hell's designs.
“She has a kind of serenity that our Father Below finds very difficult to counteract.”
Screwtape identifies the girl's grounded, unperformed contentment as the specific quality that makes her most resistant to demonic manipulation.