John Bunyan

Born in Elstow, Bedfordshire, in 1628, John Bunyan grew up in a modest family and later became an English nonconformist preacher and writer. He lived through the religious and political upheavals of seventeenth-century England, experiences that shaped both his preaching and his books.

Bunyan is remembered above all for The Pilgrim’s Progress, first published in 1678, a Christian allegory that became enormously influential and widely read far beyond his own time. He also wrote many other works, and his plain, forceful style helped make serious religious ideas feel immediate and human.

Part of Bunyan’s legend comes from the years he spent in prison for preaching without official approval. That struggle deepened his reputation as a writer of conviction, and he died in London on August 31, 1688. Today he is still read not only for his religious importance, but for the energy, imagination, and staying power of his prose.