"This is a reinterpretation of John Bunyan, a prolific author best known for his two allegories, The Pilgrim's Progress and The Holy War, and his spiritual autobiography, Grace Abounding. In this book, Richard L. Greaves draws on recent literature on depression to demonstrate that Bunyan suffered from this mood disorder as a young man and then used this experience to help mold his literary works. Light and darkness, joy and sadness, despair and hope became key literary motifs.".

"In this biography, each of Bunyan's works, including the dozen published posthumously, is analyzed in its immediate historical context. The Pilgrim's Progress, although not published until 1678, takes its rightful place as a contribution to the momentous debate over conscience between 1667 and 1673."--BOOK JACKET.