The Pilgrim's Progress Respect and Reputation Quotes

How we cite our quotes: Paragraph (P#) or Line (Line #)

Quote #4

Faithful: Well, he seems to be a very pretty man.

Christian: That is, to them who have thorough acquaintance with him, for he is best abroad, near home he is ugly enough: Your saying that he is a pretty man, brings to my mind what I have observed in the work of the Painter, whose Pictures shew best at a distance, but very near, more unpleasing. (P428-429)

Hundreds of years later, Cher Horowitz from Clueless would describe this as being "a Monet."  Talkative looks good from a distance, but up close he's a mess. Christian picks up on the word "pretty" here to reference Talkative's main interest: looking good. Since, as Christian guesses, those close to him know he's less than perfect, Talkative's main concern is with seeming good to those at a distance—strangers, marginal acquaintances, the "public."

Quote #5

"I am become a gentleman of good quality; yet my great-grandfather was but a waterman looking one way and rowing another; and I got most of my estate by the same occupation." (P511)

By-ends is speaking here… as usual making the world turn him a healthy profit. This particular image of rowing, however, specifically calls up the two-facedness that Bunyan is saying it takes to win in the worldly-world. You have to be looking one way and moving another.

Quote #6

"He hath railed on our noble Prince Beelzebub, and hath spoken contemptibly of his honourable Friends, whose names are the Lord Old Man, the Lord Carnal Delight, the Lord Luxurious, the Lord Desire of Vain Glory, my old Lord Lechery, Sir Having Greedy, with all the rest of our Nobility..." (P511)

Not much subtlety here, is there? "Prince," "Lord," and "Sir"? These titles directly reference the aristocracy of Bunyan's own country, England. All you have to do is look at the names to see how he views these blue-bloods. Why should he target not just the rich but the noble, though? How does Faithful offend them in particular?