Zusammenfassung
Zusammenfassung von Der Heilige Krieg
Für wen es gedacht ist
For readers who love Christian allegory, the Puritan tradition and The Pilgrim's Progress, and anyone who likes seeing a mind drawn as a city.
Worum es in diesem Buch geht
The Holy War is an allegory by John Bunyan, first printed in 1682. Bunyan was a Bedfordshire preacher and tinker who had spent years in prison for preaching without a license. He had already written The Pilgrim's Progress, which follows one traveler on the road. This book looks at the same faith from another side. It follows a whole town, and the town is a human being.
The town is called Mansoul. It is a fair and well built place, made by the great king Shaddai, who is God. Bunyan tells of its fall to the enemy Diabolus, its siege, its rescue by the king's Son Emmanuel, and the long struggle to keep what has been won. You get a story of walls, gates, captains, councils, trials and petitions. You also get a map of the inner life, in which every street and officer stands for something in you. Let us begin at the gates of Mansoul, where the trouble starts.
In dieser Zusammenfassung
- 1Mansoul is a fair town with five gatesFree
- 2Diabolus wins the town with words
- 3Shaddai sends captains to besiege the town
- 4Emmanuel comes and Mansoul is claimed
- 5Peace is fragile and the town grows careless
- 6What the story means and how Bunyan tells it
Punkt 1 von 6
Mansoul is a fair town with five gates
Bunyan opens with a wide view. Many kingdoms lie in the universe, and one of them is a small, splendid region called Mansoul. Shaddai built it for his own delight, and he gave it a strong wall and five gates. The gates are named for the senses, so we meet Ear-gate, Eye-gate, Mouth-gate, Nose-gate and Feel-gate. Whoever holds the gates controls what comes in.
The town has a government as well as walls. Lord Understanding serves as its mayor. Mr. Recorder, whose other name is Conscience, keeps the law of Shaddai in his mind and speaks it plainly. Lord Willbewill commands the gates and has great power in the town. Each of these officers is a faculty of the soul, and Bunyan gives each of them a face, a temper and a rank.
At first all is well. The people love their king and live under his law, and nothing in Mansoul needs fixing. Bunyan wants us to feel what is at stake before the attack begins. A city that is trusted and happy is also a city that can be lost.
Then the narrator turns to the enemy beyond the walls. Diabolus, once a great lord in Shaddai's own court, has been cast out for rebellion. He looks at Mansoul with envy and with a plan. Bunyan treats him less as a monster than as a clever and patient schemer, and that choice shapes everything that follows.
This opening teaches how to read the book. Every name is a label, and every label can be read twice, once as a person in the tale and once as a part of you. Bunyan trusts you to keep both in view.
That’s 1 of 6 key points.
The rest of the summary, written and spoken, and the whole book: free to start.
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Who’s who
- Diabolus
- A fallen lord from Shaddai's court, he envies Mansoul and seeks to rule its people through persuasion.
- Shaddai
- The great king who built Mansoul, he loves the town and opposes Diabolus's claims upon it.
- Emmanuel
- Shaddai's Son, he leads his father's army against Diabolus and seeks Mansoul's allegiance.
- Lord Willbewill
- The officer commanding Mansoul's gates, he represents the will and can be swayed by competing masters.
- Mr. Recorder
- Also called Conscience, he remembers Shaddai's law and speaks unwelcome truths to the people of Mansoul.
- Lord Understanding
- Mansoul's mayor, he is initially wise and loyal to Shaddai and distrusts the stranger approaching the gate.
- Captain Boanerges
- Leader of Shaddai's first four captains, he seeks to awaken Mansoul to its danger under Diabolus.
About this edition
Every format is free to start, and print and large print are at cost.
- LengthAbout 100,000 words
- Reading timeAbout 6 h 40 min
- FormatseBook, large-print eBook, audiobook, 15-minute summary
- LanguagesEnglish and 9 other languages
Questions about Der Heilige Krieg
What is The Holy War by John Bunyan about?
It is an allegory about the town of Mansoul, which stands for the human soul. The devil Diabolus takes the town, and God's Son Emmanuel comes to win it back and teach it to stay faithful.
Who is Diabolus in The Holy War?
Diabolus is the devil in Bunyan's allegory. He is a fallen lord from the court of the king Shaddai who wins Mansoul by clever speech and then rules it as a tyrant.
What do the characters in The Holy War stand for?
Most names are labels. Mansoul is the human being, Shaddai is God, Emmanuel is Christ, and Lord Willbewill, Mr. Recorder and Lord Understanding stand for the will, the conscience and the understanding.
Is The Holy War as famous as The Pilgrim's Progress?
It is less read. The Pilgrim's Progress follows one traveler, while The Holy War shows a whole town at war. Bunyan published it in 1682, several years after the first part of the Pilgrim story.
Is The Holy War hard to read?
No. The story is easy to follow because it is a clear tale of a town, its king, an enemy and a rescue. Bunyan's language is plain and strong, and every name tells you what it stands for, like Lord Willbewill.