John Bunyan (1628-1688)

- Passed through 11 editions in his lifetime
- Translated into more than 70 languages and dialects
- Uses the metaphor of a journey from City of Destruction to the Celestial City
- Son of modest family
- Becomes a tinker (fixes pots and pans) like his father
- Fought in Civil War (1644-46) on side of Parliamentary Army
- Becomes a Christian and joined a Baptist church in Bedford at age 30 - becomes pastor
- Began preaching in nearby villages
- Imprisoned in 1660 becasue he refused to follow Act of Conformity - 3 month sentence stretched to 12 years
- Briefly released in 1671, then jailed again in 1672
- Spends most of the second time in prison preaching to other prisoners and writing books
- Wrote The Pilgrim’s Progress while a was imprisoned in 1675 and wrote Part II, the sequel in 1684
- Writes over 60 books altogether

allegory - a narrative that has layers of meaning in addition to the literal meaning