Suggestions
Use up and down arrows to review and enter to select.Please wait while we process your payment
If you don't see it, please check your spam folder. Sometimes it can end up there.
If you don't see it, please check your spam folder. Sometimes it can end up there.
Please wait while we process your payment
By signing up you agree to our terms and privacy policy.
Don’t have an account? Subscribe now
Create Your Account
Sign up for your FREE 7-day trial
Already have an account? Log in
Your Email
Choose Your Plan
Save over 50% with a SparkNotes PLUS Annual Plan!
Purchasing SparkNotes PLUS for a group?
Get Annual Plans at a discount when you buy 2 or more!
Price
$24.99 $18.74 /subscription + tax
Subtotal $37.48 + tax
Save 25% on 2-49 accounts
Save 30% on 50-99 accounts
Want 100 or more? Contact us for a customized plan.
Your Plan
Payment Details
Payment Summary
SparkNotes Plus
You'll be billed after your free trial ends.
7-Day Free Trial
Not Applicable
Renews March 30, 2023 March 23, 2023
Discounts (applied to next billing)
DUE NOW
US $0.00
SNPLUSROCKS20 | 20% Discount
This is not a valid promo code.
Discount Code (one code per order)
SparkNotes Plus subscription is $4.99/month or $24.99/year as selected above. The free trial period is the first 7 days of your subscription. TO CANCEL YOUR SUBSCRIPTION AND AVOID BEING CHARGED, YOU MUST CANCEL BEFORE THE END OF THE FREE TRIAL PERIOD. You may cancel your subscription on your Subscription and Billing page or contact Customer Support at custserv@bn.com. Your subscription will continue automatically once the free trial period is over. Free trial is available to new customers only.
Choose Your Plan
For the next 7 days, you'll have access to awesome PLUS stuff like AP English test prep, No Fear Shakespeare translations and audio, a note-taking tool, personalized dashboard, & much more!
You’ve successfully purchased a group discount. Your group members can use the joining link below to redeem their group membership. You'll also receive an email with the link.
Members will be prompted to log in or create an account to redeem their group membership.
Thanks for creating a SparkNotes account! Continue to start your free trial.
Please wait while we process your payment
Your PLUS subscription has expired
Please wait while we process your payment
Please wait while we process your payment
In his introduction, Bunyan addresses his second book, known as Part II of The Pilgrim’s Progress. He orders the book to follow in the footsteps of Part I, embarking on a pilgrimage of its own. Bunyan calls the book by the name of Christiana and, thereby identifying it with Christian’s wife, Christiana.
Bunyan then imagines Christiana offering him several objections to the proposed pilgrimage. First, she disagrees that some may not believe that she is truly authored by the original writer of Christian’s tale. The author replies that Christiana needs only send for him, and he will arrive to claim her as his own creation. Second, Christiana says that some readers might react angrily to the book. Here Bunyan answers that she should not fear this, since the first book has so many readers across Europe and America. Third, Christiana objects that certain people might dislike the use of allegory. Bunyan defends using fiction to tell what he considers to be religious truths. Finally, Christiana asks about those readers who call Bunyan’s work mere romance, a style of heroic prose and verse narrative. Bunyan says that not everyone can be pleased but reminds Christiana of the long list of vibrant characters the book contains and reassures her that readers will love her.
The narrator recounts his follow-up dream about Christian’s wife and children left behind in the City of Destruction. This time he dreams of an elderly man named Sagacity, who visits to talk about the City of Destruction, and asks whether Sagacity has heard of Christian. Sagacity says that he has and that Christian resides now in the Celestial City. The narrator also asks Sagacity about Christian’s wife, Christiana, and their four sons. Sagacity answers that he knows they packed up and embarked on a journey to find Christian and be reunited. Sagacity now acts as a narrator and offers to tell the story of Christiana’s pilgrimage.
At the beginning of Sagacity’s tale, Christiana invites a fellow townsperson named Mercy to accompany her on the pilgrimage. She offers to hire Mercy as her servant but says that they will share all their possessions on the trip as equals. Mercy agrees, and Christiana is joyful, not only at having a caretaker for her four children on the journey but also at having urged another human toward salvation. Mercy feels pity for those whom she will leave behind. Christiana says that pity befits a pilgrim and that one day those left behind may choose to follow her.
Christiana, Mercy, and the children cross the Slough of Despond. They slip several times but do not fall in. At this point, the narrator says that Sagacity ends his tale, and the narrator himself falls asleep and follows Christiana’s progress in a dream. Christiana’s group comes upon the gate to the path that will lead them the rest of the way to the Celestial City. A frightening dog barks at them. A gatekeeper appears and demands to know who they are. Christiana says she is Christian’s wife, and the gatekeeper expresses admiration for him. He opens the gate and lets in Christiana and her children, but Mercy remains outside the gate. Terrified, she remembers a passage from the Gospel of Matthew in which two women are said to grind at a mill. According to the passage, only one is saved while the other is turned away. Mercy assumes she will be turned away but knocks on the door anyway. The gatekeeper demands to know who she is. Christiana explains. Mercy nearly faints from fear but is allowed in.
After passing through the gate, Christiana and Mercy express relief at having been admitted. Christiana remarks how odd it is that such an ugly and frightening dog should reside with the gatekeeper and asks the gatekeeper to explain. He says that the dog belongs to a neighbor and actually performs a useful service by barking so ferociously, scaring off beggars. By contrast, earnest pilgrims stand up to the dog. The gatekeeper feeds Christiana and her group and washes their feet.
Please wait while we process your payment