God in the Dock: Essays on Theology and Ethics

From 1939 to 1945, the events of World War II had a concrete impact on the daily lives of people living in Britain. As the war effort intensified, the government introduced strict rationing to ensure fair distribution of scarce goods such as food and fuel. Everyday food items like meat, sugar, butter, and eggs were limited, and citizens were forced to use ration books to make purchases. This limited food supply was supplemented by the “Dig for Victory” campaign, which promoted growing vegetables in private and public gardens. Clothing was rationed under the “Utility Scheme,” which restricted styles and materials to funnel supplies to the front lines and reduce waste. The “Make Do and Mend” campaign encouraged people to repair and reuse clothes, rather than buying new ones. Although rationing reinforced a sense of shared sacrifice, many people also resented the increased government control. The political and social essays in God in the Dock reflect both sides of this spectrum: While celebrating the sacrifices of his fellow citizens, Lewis also searches for ways for Britain to shake off the restraints of the war.

Alongside austerity, bombing also had a profound impact on daily life. The German bombing campaign known as the Blitz targeted major cities, including London and Coventry, from 1940 to 1941. During eight months of bombing, air raids destroyed infrastructure and killed tens of thousands of civilians. In major cities, families sheltered in underground stations or backyard air-raid shelters. Thousands of children were evacuated from cities to the countryside to escape the danger, as seen in Lewis’s novel The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. 

The constant fear and anxiety caused by these air raids and the war itself had a lasting effect on the British population. The wartime experience offers important emotional context for Lewis’s essays on the morality of the war and his thoughts on the “dualism” of good and evil, reflecting a social and political climate grappling with the problem of evil in new ways as the horrors of World War II and the Holocaust came increasingly to light.