Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Pilgrim’s Progress, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
The Burden of Sin and Salvation through Christ
The World vs. Christianity
Obstacles on the Journey
The Centrality of the Bible
Women as Pilgrims
Summary
Analysis
Great-heart, Christiana, Mercy, and the boys arrive at the Cross, where Christian lost his burden. Christiana asks Great-heart questions about this. She knows that sinners are pardoned both by word (or promise) and by deed. She understands God’s promise, but she asks Great-heart to give a discourse on the subject of how pardon occurs.
Christiana wants to understand the doctrine of salvation in greater detail. Through her questions, she prompts theological commentary, suggesting that, in Bunyan’s opinion, women should be as interested in these matters as men are.
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Great-heart explains that sinners’ pardon is obtained by another—namely, the Keeper of the Gate. He “has performed Righteousness to cover you, and spilt Blood to wash you in.” This is possible because there is nobody else like him—a person both human and divine, who possesses a righteousness more than sufficient for all sinners. Because he is perfect, he has no need of that righteousness to justify himself and can give it away as a gift. He ransoms sinners from their own sins by his blood and covers them with his own righteousness. This is what it means to be pardoned by deed.
Christiana’s question prompts an intricate discussion of the doctrines of justification (i.e., how Christ saves a human being from their sins) and of Christ’s human and divine natures. In brief, Christ’s sacrificial death atones for human sin because he is human like them yet also sinlessly divine, not needing to atone for any sins of his own.
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Christiana is pleased with this explanation. She asks if it was understanding of this teaching that caused Christian’s burden to fall from his shoulders. Great-heart says yes—it was this that made Christian understand why he need not carry the burden of his sins any longer. A forgiven sinner doesn’t just feel joy at the departure of the burden, but a deepened affection for their redeemer as well.
This point clarifies why Christian continued to bear his burden of sin beyond the Wicket-gate. To some extent, Christian’s lingering burden is subjective—when he comes to the Cross and understands what Christ’s righteousness achieves on his behalf, his burden disappears.
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When Christiana and Mercy rejoice at Great-heart’s words, Great-heart points out that not everyone who witnessed Christ’s death felt similarly—some even mocked him. Therefore they should be all the more grateful for the grace that causes them to love Christ.
Doctrines aren’t an abstract matter for Bunyan; they should touch people’s hearts and motivate their actions. Moreover, only a special working of God’s grace within a person can cause them to understand and appreciate such teachings.
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The group journeys on. They soon come upon Simple, Sloth, and Presumption hung in irons by the roadside. Great-heart explains that these men hindered others whenever they could, by persuading them away from pilgrimage. They did this by speaking ill of the Lord, his land, and his servants.
This passage reveals another change along Christiana’s path: some of the sinister figures Christian met have suffered the consequences of their deceit.
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Next, they arrive at the Hill Difficulty. Great-heart shows the women the by-ways by which Formality and Hypocrisy got lost. Even though the byways are chained off and filled with ditches, people nevertheless choose them—often supposing the Hill will be too difficult. The group starts up the Hill themselves and soon grow weary, but Great-heart urges them onward until they reach the King’s Arbor, where they rest.
As the book has already showed, people naturally incline to take what seems to be the easiest path. If this is true in a physical journey, it’s all the more true in a spiritual pilgrimage, Bunyan suggests.
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The women and boys refresh themselves, but when they get up to go, Christiana forgets her little bottle of reviving spirits and must send one of her sons back to fetch it. Great-heart explains that pilgrims often fail to keep watch, and they lose things that they’ve gained along the way.
Significantly, this is the same spot where Christian misplaced his certificate. This parallelism suggests that it’s common for pilgrims to become forgetful and complacent as they journey.
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Going on their way, they come upon the spot where Mistrust and Timorous tried to warn Christian off from the lions; both were burned through their tongues with an iron for this reason. Soon they see the lions for themselves, and a giant named Grim also appears, intending to force them back. But Great-heart draws his sword and strikes Grim down, allowing the women and children to walk safely past the chained lions.
Mistrust and Timorous, too, met with an unhappy end because of their treachery. Great-heart slays the first of several giants the group will encounter. Though Bunyan suggests in some places that women are weaker pilgrims and stand in greater need of protection, it’s also clear that women must progress for themselves, summoning their own courage.
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