The Pilgrim's Regress

John is terrified of breaking the Landlord’s rules but finds it impossible to keep them all. He also discovers that the back of the card has an entirely different set of rules. Seeking escape, John travels further from home than ever before. He hears a voice calling him, which draws him to a wall beside the road. Through its window, he sees a forest, and he imagines a magical Island beyond.

John’s uncle George receives a notice to vacate his farm—an edict that shocks the family, as they believed that the lease would last longer. The Steward reminds them that the Landlord has the right to evict anyone without notice, and they accept reluctantly. The family travels east toward the mountains and the Landlord’s castle. As night falls, George crosses a brook, and they lose sight of him. Walking home again, John questions his mother about the fairness of being evicted, and his mother tries to reassure him.

John grows into adolescence and yearns for the mysterious Island. His visions of it become more and more rare. Desperate, John returns to the woods to search for it, but the search is a failure, and he grows frustrated. In his moment of despair, a voice addresses him, and he turns to find a naked, laughing “brown girl,” who tells him that she is what he truly wants, and they have sex.

John keeps returning to the woods, seeking the company of the girl. Although their encounters bring him pleasure, John’s feelings for the girl fade, and he eventually decides to leave her. In response, the girl reveals that he fathered numerous daughters. Terrified, John runs home.

John feels guilty for breaking the Landlord’s rules, and his visions of the Island fade. The girl and her many daughters appear to him constantly, reminding him of his failures. Despite his attempts to follow the rules, he finds the effort increasingly futile. One night, he sees a coach passing by, and a voice calls to him. After his parents fall asleep, he sets out westward, driven by the renewed hope of finding the Island.

John stops at an inn for breakfast and meets a man named Mr. Enlightenment, who offers John assistance. As they travel together, John reveals that he is from Puritania, prompting Mr. Enlightenment to disparage Puritania’s beliefs, particularly the existence of the Landlord, whom he insists is a myth created by the Stewards. Despite John’s skepticism, Mr. Enlightenment’s confidence and references to flawed science sway him. Mr. Enlightenment invites John to visit the city of Claptrap, boasting about its development. When they part, Mr. Enlightenment heads toward Claptrap while John continues westward.

John feels liberated by the idea that there is no Landlord. Looking back at the mountains in the east, he sees their beauty for the first time without fear of the Landlord. As he continues west, he meets a man named Mr. Vertue. Mr. Vertue remarks on John’s happiness, which John explains comes from his freedom from the Landlord’s rules. Mr. Vertue, who also knows about the Landlord, says that he would oppose any rules he didn’t like. John contemplates the freedom to act without interference. He considers shooting a robin but ultimately decides against it.

John and Mr. Vertue meet a young woman named Media Halfways as they travel. When she asks about their destination, Mr. Vertue says that he is on a pilgrimage but doesn’t have a clear goal. John then shares his quest to find the Island. Media suggests that they visit her father in Thrill, as he has mentioned a place similar to John’s Island. She leads them to a turn that will take them to Thrill, but Vertue refuses to deviate from the main road. John decides to follow Media.

John and Media walk along a grassy lane, kissing and talking. Media says that this is love and the true path to the Island. They arrive at an ancient city full of ivy-covered spires and turrets, cross through its gate, and enter a room with stained-glass windows, where they meet Media’s father, Mr. Halfways, a solemn man reminiscent of the Steward.

John, Media, and Mr. Halfways share a meal. When John mentions his quest for the Island, Mr. Halfways suggests that the Island is a state of the soul. Afterward, Mr. Halfways plays a harp, creating music that gives John a vivid vision of the Island. However, the music stops abruptly, bringing John back to reality. John begs Mr. Halfways to repeat the song, and the latter relents. During the third playing of the song, John’s attention shifts to Media. Mr. Halfways sees this and says that John has found his Island in Media’s heart.

John and Media declare their love for each other. However, the moment is interrupted by a young man dressed in metal wire, who mocks Media. When Media reacts angrily, the young man reveals that he is her brother, Gus Halfways. Media, in a fit of despair, tells John that they must part forever and rushes out, shouting her intent to kill herself.

Gus dismisses Media’s dramatic exit, claiming that she frequently threatens suicide and is merely a “brown girl.” He reveals that their father believes he is inspired by Muses but is essentially a pimp. Gus invites John to visit Eschropolis the next day to see “real poetry,” contrasting it with John’s fantasies. John accepts the offer.

Gus and John leave early and go unnoticed by Mr. Halfways and Media. Gus shows John a machine on wheels, which he calls his “old bus,” and praises its speed and beauty. John sees no connection between the machine and the Island. Gus also praises the machine’s non-erotic form in contrast with the ancient gods. After some mechanical difficulties, they drive off to a city where all the houses are made of steel.

Gus leads John into a room filled with people called the Clevers. They are young or try to appear young, and the men and women have swapped traditional gender characteristics. Gus introduces John to them. After deciding that he needs to experience “real music,” they select a woman named Victoriana to sing first. She performs with a toy harp, and John sees an absurd vision of a potted plant. Afterward, she slaps John, accusing him of being a persecutor. She claims that her persecution is proof of her greatness as an artist. When she leaves, the Clevers criticize her.

A bearded man performs next with an African drum. His performance gives John a vision of tangled roots and obscene imagery. The Clevers praise the performance, leaving John feeling like he’s missed something. When the singer claims that his song has revealed what John truly wanted, John disputes this. The Clevers become hostile, interpreting John’s confusion as a failure to distinguish between art and pornography. The singer spits in John’s face and leaves while the Clevers mock John. Gus tries to calm the situation by proposing that another performer, Glugly, sing something more formal.

Glugly’s performance consists of awkward gestures and nonsensical sounds. John, trying to be polite, thanks her, but Glugly cannot respond due to an accident in her infancy. The Clevers explain that the performance reflects the reality of modern art, which emerged from the traumas of war. John challenges this, pointing out that the war was fought by their fathers, who have since returned to their everyday lives. This provokes the Clevers again, and they attack him both physically and verbally. John flees, chased by the Clevers and the other people of Eschropolis.

After fleeing, John feels exhausted and contemplates returning to Mr. Halfways. However, after realizing that the man’s illusions will not help him reach his destination, John continues his journey west. He meets a man named Mr. Mammon, whom he asks for assistance, but the man dismisses John. John reluctantly turns away, only for Mr. Mammon to call him back. He reveals that he owns Eschropolis and that the Clevers sustain themselves through his wealth. He then resumes his work on his fence, and John leaves alone.

John arrives at a rocky valley with a narrow pass at the far end. As he nears the pass, he finds men guarding the entrance. Their captain tells John that he cannot pass because the area belongs to the Spirit of the Age. John says that he will go, but he’s told that he has already entered the Spirit’s territory and that the pass is the only way out. The captain orders one of his men, Enlightenment, to take John to their Master. Enlightenment drags John back down the valley.

As John is dragged down the valley, it’s revealed that his captor is not the same Mr. Enlightenment he met earlier but his son, Sigismund. Sigismund dismisses his father as ignorant and tries to convince John that the Island does not exist—it’s simply a fantasy created to mask John’s lusts. John contemplates going to the mountains in the east, but Sigismund dismisses them as illusions. The mountain ahead grows larger, and Sigismund forces John to confront the Spirit of the Age, a stone giant with closed eyes. He then locks John in a nearby dungeon.

John spends the night in the dungeon. The morning reveals numerous other prisoners who hide from the sunlight. John crawls to the grate, but the sight of the giant opening its eyes makes John recoil. The giant’s gaze turns everything it touches transparent. John sees the insides of the other prisoners in gruesome detail. He realizes that he is in a living hell.

John endures daily torment from the jailor who lectures the prisoners, equating food with filth. John rejects the jailor’s twisted logic, and the jailor accuses him of treason and silences him with a blow. He turns to the other prisoners and quizzes Master Parrot, a young prisoner, who robotically recites the responses the jailor drilled into them. The jailor congratulates Master Parrot and promises him a reward. He gives John another kick and leaves.

John is brought before the giant. A group of guards also approaches, leading a cloaked figure riding a stallion. She breaks free and reveals herself as an armored woman wielding a sword, Reason. Reason challenges the giant, betting that she can give him three riddles he cannot answer. The giant reluctantly agrees. The first is about the color of things in dark places, the second is about a man and his enemy crossing a river with a single bridge, and the third is how to tell a copy from an original. When the giant is unable to answer any of the riddles, Reason drives her sword into his heart, causing him to crumble.