"Scott takes his heroes and villains seriously, which is, after all, the way that heroes and villains take themselves--especially villains.” — G.K. Chesterton, Twelve Types
Villains always take themselves seriously. Too seriously, in fact. That isn’t to equate taking oneself seriously with villainy, but to point out that no villain has ever been able to take himself lightly. It is one of his worst qualities.
“Angels can fly because they can take themselves lightly.” — G.K. Chesterton
When God is your center of gravity, you’re free to fly around without crashing back to the surface or drifting away into the outer darkness. You have enough seriousness to keep you grounded and enough levity to keep you afloat.
"The devil . . the prowde spirite . . cannot endure to be mocked." — Thomas More
Heretics are, in one sense, no joke; but in another sense, that's all they are, only they cannot see it, and that's one of their biggest problems.
"The best way to drive out the devil, if he will not yield to texts of Scripture, is to jeer and flout him, for he cannot bear scorn." — Martin Luther
Bad guys cannot bear being the brunt of the joke. They can't laugh at themselves. And they flat refuse to see how ridiculous that is. In the meantime, they simultaneously see with perfect clarity how silly everyone else is. That is textbook villainy 101.
"The Devil is (in the long run) an ass." - C.S. Lewis
The essence of sin is incorrigibility - a refusal to listen, a resistance to being teachable. It is a stubborn insistence on one's own inclinations and proclivities over and beyond the reach of any other. It is being an ass.
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