The Slough of Despond ( or ; "swamp of despair") is a fictional, deep bog in

John Bunyan John Bunyan (; baptised 30 November 162831 August 1688) was an English writer and Puritan preacher best remembered as the author of the Christian allegory ''The Pilgrim's Progress,'' which also became an influential literary model. In addition ...

's allegory ''

The Pilgrim's Progress ''The Pilgrim's Progress from This World, to That Which Is to Come'' is a 1678 Christian allegory written by John Bunyan. It is regarded as one of the most significant works of theological fiction in English literature and a progenitor of ...

'', into which the protagonist Christian sinks under the weight of his

sin In a religious context, sin is a transgression against divine law. Each culture has its own interpretation of what it means to commit a sin. While sins are generally considered actions, any thought, word, or act considered immoral, selfish, s ...

s and his sense of

guilt Guilt may refer to: *Guilt (emotion), an emotion that occurs when a person feels that they have violated a moral standard *Culpability, a legal term *Guilt (law), a legal term Music *Guilt (album), ''Guilt'' (album), a 2009 album by Mims *Guilt ( ...

for them. It is described in the text: The "Slough of Despond" may have been inspired by Squitch

Fen A fen is a type of peat-accumulating wetland fed by mineral-rich ground or surface water. It is one of the main types of wetlands along with marshes, swamps, and bogs. Bogs and fens, both peat-forming ecosystems, are also known as mires. T ...

, a wet and marshy area near his cottage in

Harrowden, Bedfordshire Harrowden is a one-street hamlet in the civil parish of Eastcotts, in Bedfordshire. Harrowden has only 18 houses and 32 people on the electoral roll. Elstow Brook runs through it. There is just one road - Old Harrowden Lane - which leads to a ...

, which Bunyan had to cross on his way to church in Elstow, or "The Souls' Slough" on the Great North Road between

Tempsford Tempsford is a village and civil parish in the Central Bedfordshire district of the county of Bedfordshire, England, about east north-east of the county town of Bedford. The village is split by the A1 Great North Road and is located just befo ...

and

Biggleswade Biggleswade ( ) is a market town and civil parish in Central Bedfordshire in Bedfordshire, England. It lies on the River Ivel, 11 miles (18 km) south-east of Bedford. Its population was 16,551 in the 2011 United Kingdom census, and its es ...

Allusions in other literature

This phrase has been referred to frequently in subsequent literature.

Nathaniel Hawthorne Nathaniel Hawthorne (July 4, 1804 – May 19, 1864) was an American novelist and short story writer. His works often focus on history, morality, and religion. He was born in 1804 in Salem, Massachusetts, from a family long associated with that t ...

's tale ''

The Celestial Railroad "The Celestial Railroad" is short story by American author Nathaniel Hawthorne. In the allegorical tale, Hawthorne adopts the style and content of the seventeenth-century allegory ''The Pilgrim's Progress'' by John Bunyan. Where Bunyan's tale portr ...

'' is a satirical contrast between Bunyan's ''The Pilgrim's Progress'' and Hawthorne's perception of the current state of society. In

Emily Brontë Emily Jane Brontë (, commonly ; 30 July 1818 – 19 December 1848) was an English novelist and poet who is best known for her only novel, ''Wuthering Heights'', now considered a classic of English literature. She also published a book of poet ...

's ''

Wuthering Heights ''Wuthering Heights'' is an 1847 novel by Emily Brontë, initially published under her pen name Ellis Bell. It concerns two families of the landed gentry living on the West Yorkshire moorland, moors, the Earnshaws and the Lintons, and their tur ...

'' the character Mr. Heathcliff likens his son's state of depression to having been dropped "into a Slough of Despond". In George Gissing's ''

New Grub Street ''New Grub Street'' is a novel by George Gissing published in 1891, which is set in the literary and journalistic circles of 1880s London. Gissing revised and shortened the novel for a French edition of 1901. Plot The story deals with the lite ...

'', Milvain expresses concern for his friend Reardon's mental health, "His friends should exert themselves to raise him out of this fearful slough of despond". In ''

Horatio Hornblower Horatio Hornblower is a fictional officer in the British Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars, the protagonist of a series of novels and stories by C. S. Forester. He later became the subject of films, radio and television programmes, an ...

: The Even Chance'', by

C. S. Forester Cecil Louis Troughton Smith (27 August 1899 – 2 April 1966), known by his pen name Cecil Scott "C. S." Forester, was an English novelist known for writing tales of naval warfare, such as the 12-book Horatio Hornblower series depicting a Roya ...

, Midshipman Archie Kennedy describes Hornblower's new home as "His Majesty's ship of the line Justinian, known elsewise among her intimates as the good ship Slough of Despond." In Mary McCarthy's novel ''

The Group The Group may refer to: Film and television * ''The Group'' (Australian TV series), 1971 situation comedy produced by Cash Harmon Television for ATN7 * ''The Group'' (Canadian TV series), 1968–70 music variety on CBC Television * ''The Group ...

'' (1954), "Kay saw that er husband, Haraldwas sinking into a Slough of Despond (as they termed his sudden, Scandinavian fits of depression)".

W. Somerset Maugham William Somerset Maugham ( ; 25 January 1874 – 16 December 1965) was an English writer, known for his plays, novels and short stories. Born in Paris, where he spent his first ten years, Maugham was schooled in England and went to a German un ...

alludes to the Slough in his book ''

Of Human Bondage ''Of Human Bondage'' is a 1915 novel by W. Somerset Maugham. The novel is generally agreed to be Maugham's masterpiece and to be strongly autobiographical in nature, although he stated, "This is a novel, not an autobiography; though much in i ...

,'' where in a letter to the protagonist, Philip Carey, the failed poet Cronshaw details that he has "hopelessly immersed imself ... inthe Slough of Despond," referring to his poverty. In

Gerald Brom Gerald Brom (born March 9, 1965), known professionally as Brom, is an American gothic fantasy artist and illustrator, known for his work in role-playing games, novels, and comics. Early life Brom was born March 9, 1965, in Albany, Georgia. As t ...

's novel, ''

The Child Thief ''The Child Thief'' is a 2009 dark fantasy novel by the artist and novelist Gerald Brom. A dark retelling of the stories of Peter Pan and The Lost Boys, Brom takes many liberties with the originals by J M Barrie. Brom incorporates monsters and ...

'', The Slough is a passage of terror into the world Avalon, which Peter must travel through. In

John Steinbeck John Ernst Steinbeck Jr. (; February 27, 1902 – December 20, 1968) was an American writer and the 1962 Nobel Prize in Literature winner "for his realistic and imaginative writings, combining as they do sympathetic humor and keen social ...

's novel, '' Sweet Thursday'' (1954), Mack describes Doc's melancholic condition in suggesting that his fellow denizens of the Palace Flophouse help him out, using a punning conflation of slang and Bunyan: "Gentlemen ..let us highly resolve to get Doc's ass out of the sling of despond" (79). In

Harlan Ellison Harlan Jay Ellison (May 27, 1934 – June 28, 2018) was an American writer, known for his prolific and influential work in New Wave speculative fiction and for his outspoken, combative personality. Robert Bloch, the author of '' Psycho'' ...

's short story " I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream" (1967), the last five surviving humans are tortured by a godlike artificial intelligence named AM. The narrator relates how, among other harrowing experiences, "We passed through the Slough of Despond."Plot summary of "I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream"
on About.com In

Louisa May Alcott Louisa May Alcott (; November 29, 1832March 6, 1888) was an American novelist, short story writer, and poet best known as the author of the novel ''Little Women'' (1868) and its sequels ''Little Men'' (1871) and ''Jo's Boys'' (1886). Raised in ...

's '' Hospital Sketches'', a grateful Tribulation Periwinkle remarks that she feels "as did poor Christian ..on the safe side of the Slough of Despond", and in her novel ''

Jo's Boys ''Jo's Boys, and How They Turned Out: A Sequel to "Little Men"'' is a novel by American author Louisa May Alcott, first published in 1886. The novel is the final book in the unofficial '' Little Women'' series. In it, Jo's children, now grown, ...

'', the titular character Jo's son Ted is said to be prone to "moods of gloom, and allsinto the Slough of Despond about once a week". In Charles Portis's memoir '' Combinations of Jacksons'' (1999), he observes that his local dark marsh where he frolicked as a boy wasn't big enough or distinctive enough to have a proper name such as the Slough of Despond, sadly it was just "the slew". In J. G. Farrell's

Booker Prize The Booker Prize, formerly known as the Booker Prize for Fiction (1969–2001) and the Man Booker Prize (2002–2019), is a Literary award, literary prize awarded each year for the best novel written in English and published in the United King ...

winner, ''

The Siege of Krishnapur ''The Siege of Krishnapur'' is a novel by J. G. Farrell, first published in 1973. Inspired by events such as the sieges of Cawnapore (Kanpur) and Lucknow, the book details the siege of a fictional Indian town, Krishnapur, during the Indian Rebe ...

'' (1973), the haunted Padre refers to a particularly dangerous crossing thus:

Allusions in placenames

* An area of wetlands in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

located on the

Bruce Trail The Bruce Trail is a hiking trail in southern Ontario, Canada, from the Niagara River to the tip of Tobermory, Ontario. The main trail is more than long and there are over of associated side trails. The trail mostly follows the edge of the Nia ...

near Big Bay, Ontario, north of

Owen Sound Owen Sound ( 2021 Census population 21,612) is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. The county seat of Grey County, it is located at the mouths of the Pottawatomi and Sydenham Rivers on an inlet of Georgian Bay. The primary tourist attract ...

is named after this fictional place. * A quarry site near Symington in

South Ayrshire South Ayrshire ( sco, Sooth Ayrshire; gd, Siorrachd Àir a Deas, ) is one of thirty-two council areas of Scotland, covering the southern part of Ayrshire. It borders onto Dumfries and Galloway, East Ayrshire and North Ayrshire. On 30 June 2 ...

has the Slough Burn flowing through it and on

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maps is marked as the Slough of Despond.

In other media

Mentioned in

City and Colour Dallas Michael John Albert Green (born September 29, 1980) is a Canadian musician, singer, songwriter and record producer who records under the name City and Colour. He is also known for his contributions as a singer, rhythm guitarist and songwr ...

's 2011 song "Northern Wind" from the album ''Little Hell'':

I'm the darkest hour
just before the dawn
I'm slowly sinking
into the Slough of Despond

It is also mentioned in

Cradle of Filth Cradle of Filth are an English extreme metal band formed in Suffolk in 1991. The band's musical style evolved originally from black metal to a cleaner and more "produced" amalgam of gothic metal, symphonic metal and other metal genres. Their ly ...

's 2010 song "Beyond Eleventh Hour", contained on the album '' Darkly, Darkly, Venus Aversa'':

Part of the garden, her dark Eden
Fed Turkish Delights by poisoned fronds
My heart hardened in her wet season
Treading mud in her slough of despond

Notes

References

External links

* * {{Authority control Bogs, fens and marshes in mythology Christian allegory John Bunyan Fictional bodies of water