The Pilgrim's Progress in American Juvenile Literature 1860-1900

John Bunyan's Christian allegory The Pilgrim's Progress has had an undeniableimpact on America. As one of the most influential religious works of theseventeenth century it was widely read throughout the centuries and is presumablystill read today in religious circles as well as university classrooms. Inwhat way this work seems to have been an inspiration for several Americanauthors will be analyzed in the course of this study. As a necessary prerequisiteone needs to examine Bunyan's work as well as the circumstancesmarked by the Civil War. Some analysis will be targeted at why The Pilgrim'sProgress was thought especially suitable for children. This work will describein detail in how the American juvenile novel published between 1860 and1900 makes use of this allegory. The intertextual dependence of the novelswith Bunyan's work is analyzed. This book also tries to point out to whichextent the religious pretext is secularized in the novels.