The Pilgrim's Regress

John, the protagonist of The Pilgrim’s Regress, allows Lewis to explore his own Search for Spiritual Truth through an allegorical quest. John embodies the archetypal role of the pilgrim, and his journey represents the spiritual and philosophical quest for truth, meaning, and, ultimately, the divine. His journey begins in Puritania, characterized by rigid moralism and a lack of genuine spiritual warmth that establishes the foundation of John’s spiritual and emotional discontent crucial to Lewis’s characterization of him. The strict, oppressive teachings of Puritania instill in John a sense of fear rather than love for the Landlord, whom Lewis positions as representative of the god of Christianity. This early environment plants the seeds of rebellion in John, igniting his desire to seek something beyond the lifeless doctrines he has been taught—a desire exacerbated by his visions of the Island, which symbolizes heaven and the ultimate truth. This initial vision and his subsequent desire to find the Island set him on his pilgrimage, the narrative’s inciting incident, leading him to encounter strange lands and characters, each serving as an allegory for different philosophical and theological perspectives, inspiring his intellectual and spiritual growth.