Importance of the House of Interpreter in The Pilgrim’s Progress


The House of Interpreter is the house where Christian knows Evangelist as his ideal pastor; becomes allegorically purified with Gods greace, with water; prefers patience to passion; knows about the constant conflict between the good and the evil, between Christ and Satan in one’s mind; learns that ‘despair’ is the most harmful thing for him. Above all, all of these increase Christian’s faith in God and God’s grace. Thus the house plays an important role in the spiritual development of Christian. Now some more detail description of this house:

         First, Christian is shown a picture of Evangelist as an ideal paster ao that he might not be misguided by any other one. Second, he is led in to “a very large parlour that was full of dust”, and before him it is swept with water. This dusty parlour means the dusty mind of Christian with the burden of original sin that is allgorically swept with the grace of God. So, soon he will be free from his burden. In fact, Purification and deep faith and commitiment are essential for a pilgrim to reach the Celestial city or Heaven. God elects some ones on the basis of the depth of faith. So, a disbeleiver can not reach the Celestial city while a beleiver comes very much closer to God. For example, Obstinate and Pliable have failed while Christian is setting for that. Third, he is shown two boys, Passion and Patience, respresenting two mental status of men, one wanting all in this world but another being patient not to grasp the worldlly things. Christian receivers the second one. Fourth, there is a buring fire, representing God's grace and two ones- one representing Christ who is trying to keep up the fire and another representing Devil who is trying to put off it. So it shows the constant conflict in one’s mind between good and evil. At last, he is shows a man in ‘an iron cage’ symbolising despair who says-
           “ I have so hardened my heart, that I can not repent.”
Seeing it, Christian’s faith increases and he understands that ‘despair’ is such a bad thing that prevents repentance which brings a man very close to God. Actually all everything in the house Christian experiences explains the aspects of ideal Christian life.