Points of View

Pilgrim's Progress is told by the author, who is pretending to describe a series of dreams that he had. It is told in the third person, with a limited omniscient view that allows the reader to hear the thoughts of some characters as well as learn the background and personal opinions of many of the minor characters that are met along the way. At times, the author directly addresses the reader in order to explain some points of the book, particularly at the introduction and conclusion of each part.

In these instances, the author apologizes for his book and explains his purpose in writing it. In the first part, the author takes great pains to stress that the book is a pretend dream written out for the religious instruction of the readers. In the second part, however, the author almost abandons the premise that this is...