The Modern Pilgrimage

The novel's exploration of pilgrimage as a secular, contemporary act, from Bunyan's words to media spectacle.

increasingBearing stren­gth in each eventdecreasing

He Who Would Valiant Be

He Who Would Valiant Be The Pilgrims' Song The two grey ladies at breakfast wonder if Harold's journey is a religious walk. One begins to sing He Who Would Valiant Be, her voice pure and certain. The Old Meaning Harold does not share their faith, but the song names what he is doing. A pilgrim is a person on a journey with a first avowed intent, come wind, come weather. The Secular Seed The word pilgrimage attaches itself to Harold's walk and will not let go. It is the first sign that his private act of penance is becoming a public story.

The Modern Saints

The Modern Saints The Buddhist Peace Mission At breakfast the plump lady tells Harold about the two Indian peace marchers who walked to the nuclear corners of the world in 1968, asking leaders to brew tea before pressing the red button. The Continuity Of Walking Their journey gives Harold a history. Walking as testimony has happened before and will happen again. The road makes a lineage. The Difference Of His Walk Harold does not have a grand political message. He is a retired man with a letter, but the old energy of pilgrimage is now his.

The Pilgrim T-Shirts

The Pilgrim T-Shirts The Branded Walk Rich arranges white T-shirts with the word PILGRIM, and a fruit drink company sponsors the group. Harold is told to hold the bottle label toward the camera. The Media Machine The newspapers report a golden aura, a rescue at Clifton Suspension Bridge, and a love story. Harold did not do any of those things. The Distortion Of Meaning Pilgrimage becomes public relations. Harold's simple act is turned into a brand, and the word pilgrim is emptied of its old, difficult honesty.

Berwick's Bunting

Berwick's Bunting The Anticipated Welcome The council of Berwick-upon-Tweed commissions placards and bunting to welcome the pilgrims. The town prepares for spectacle. The Wrong Arrival When Rich arrives without Harold, the same civic machinery celebrates him. The town does not know that the real pilgrim is still walking. The Placards Dismantled Workers remove the lettered slogans, leaving WEED WELCOMES HAR. The official welcome is as brief and false as the media story it crowns.

The Real Arrival

The Real Arrival No Applause Harold enters St Bernadine's Hospice without a brass band. A nun leads him down a clean corridor, and a dying woman blinks at him from a bed. The Pilgrimage Revealed The real arrival is not the gate or the bunting but the silent meeting between two people who have kept faith with each other. Pilgrimage is redefined as attentiveness. The Story That Remains After the crowd and the branding have disappeared, what remains is the walk itself, the confession letter, and a man and wife on a bench by the sea. That is the modern pilgrimage's true fruit.

Day two, at the hotel breakfast

Nineteen-sixty-eight peace march mentioned in the hotel

Mid-June, before Darlington

Early July, before the schism

The day Harold visits Queenie, and after