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The Monk (Dover Thrift Editions)

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Almost as entertaining as reading gothic fiction is reading
the introductions. Someone is *paying* these
academics, but they act as if they've been forced to
become circus geeks, biting the heads off chickens
for booze. You wonder if they signed their real name
to the article. The editor of "The Oxford Book of
Gothic Fiction" explains that, yes, gothic has a
particular meaning with regard to art and
architecture, but Horace Walpole didn't know that, and
used it to mean creepy and medieval, and she's
horribly embarrassed to have to call it "Gothic"
fiction for the next ten pages. She also tells you
that if you have a historical interest in this
fiction, you should start from page one, but if you
want to read GOOD literature, start on page 245 (i.e., with
Edgar Allen Poe). You wonder what the publisher thought of that advice.

Even worse is the author of the preface of the Dover edition
of "The Monk" by Matthew Gregory Lewis, who says right out in
the first paragraph that this is a terrible book ("It may
be admitted at once that this erst belauded romance has
little claim to perpetuation on its own merits."), and then
spends the entire preface suggesting other gothic
novels you'd be better off reading, although he really thinks
they're all a waste of your time. He works himself up
into such a high dudgeon, you can practically feel the
spittle hitting your face.

I don't know what he's talking about. "The Monk" is
one of the most splendid books I've read in a long time. It
has everything you'd want: A crumbling Abbey with a
monastery and a convent connected by a series of
vaults and caverns that contain mouldering skeletons,
the ghost of "the bleeding nun" who appears every 5
years at the stroke of midnight, a screech owl in the
cemetary, a pregnant nun, the Spanish Inquisition, a
naked woman cavorting with a bird, highwaymen, a
sadistic Prioress, a lustful Abbot, dead babies,
hollow statues, a mob riot and lynching, sleeping
potions and spells, and cameo appearances by the
Wandering Jew and Lucifer. The plot concerns an
innocent young virgin whose mother.... oh, never mind:
you'll never keep the plot straight anyway, not to
mention which one is Don Lorenzo and which is Don
Raymond. It's the nonstop action that will hook you.
It's amazing that the plot *can* zip along, given
that, at any given moment, at least one character is
near death because of convulsions brought on by terror
or love. It makes you wonder about the economy of
midieval Spain, if 1 in 10 people was bedridden at any
given time.

Did I mention the sex scenes? They're doozies! When
the lustful Abbott is holding a vigil at the bedside
of a woman pretending to be a monk who is dying of a
centipede bite, except the centipede didn't bite her,
it bit the abbott (never mind), the woman shakes off
delirium long enough to seduce the Abbott! At least,
I think she did. The writing gets vague at points,
since Lewis can't bring himself to mention female
body parts, instead using the word "charms" as a
blanket noun in sentences like "Through a
disarrangement of the bed covers, he could witness her
charms" or "thus he could disport himself upon his
mistress's charms". I'm not sure I'll ever be able to
use the word "charm" again, much less eat "Lucky
Charms".

Perhaps this is only worth reading for its historical
importance, or perhaps it's a lot of fun: I advise skipping
the insulting prologue by a professor who clearly
wishes he was a fraction as famous as M.G. Lewis
became by writing this book at the age of 19 in ten
weeks in 1795.

The lurid and the intellectual collide in "The Monk", Matthew Lewis' classic late-18th century Gothic novel that alighted a storm of controversy on its release and seems in many ways surprisingly modern today (unlike many such past controversial works, it retains some of its salaciousness today). This is one of my favourite novels, and has a lot to recommend to the 21st century reader. Spoilers for the ending follow.

It really isn't possible to fully understand "The Monk" unless you grasp the nature of the development of the early Gothic novel, and in particular the success of Ann Radcliffe's "The Mysteries of Udolpho". Radcliffe's work (considerably larger than "The Monk") was a huge hit on its release, famous for its heroine investigating the seemingly supernatural forces permeating her life, as well as hinted-at illicit relations and other skulduggery. Lewis was, like most readers, enraptured as he read it. However, he expressed extreme disappointment with "Udolpho"'s conclusion, where Radcliffe went on at length to show contrived logical explanations for everything, and to tamp down all of the previously-suggested immoralities. Radcliffe was aiming to make the novel (and the genre) more 'respectable', but Lewis thought the whole thing was a copout, and resolved to Radcliffe's story better.

The result is a story that embraces wholeheartedly all those things (and more) that Radcliffe was content to hint at: murder, incest, Satanism, and the pervasive supernatural. The story focuses on the gradual corruption of the title character, a monk named Ambrosio who is reputed to be the holiest member of a particular Spanish monastery. In particular, he becomes fascinated by a young woman named Antonia, who is perhaps the distilled essence of the virgin martyr figure. Meanwhile, other characters find themselves investigating the goings-on in a neighbouring nunnery, and ghosts and the Wandering Jew put in appearances. The chilling final pages will have readers torn between pity and satisfaction.

At the same time, one must understand that Lewis's literary goals do not run exclusively to the trashy. He uses the story to advance a number of ideas about institutions, as well as moral values. At the core of the story is a scathing critique of the ideas behind monasteries and clerical celibacy, as he argues that people who attempt to so thoroughly hide away from temptation do not have genuine virtue. We see this with Ambrosio, who quickly descends into depravity when the opportunity materializes. The nunnery likewise turns out to be ruled by a cruel and inhuman clutch of fanatics, and though the truth ultimately will out, it is only through an extraordinary outside intervention. Lewis also takes aim at ideas of female virtue, when take to extremes. Antonia is not just an innocent virgin, she is unnaturally innocent, to the point of having no survival skills. Ultimately, she dies because of this. Meanwhile, another female character has a child out of wedlock (while a nun!), and is given a happy ending, a daring decision by the standards of the times.

Very much a novel worth reading.

The monk is incredible. He reminds me of characters in the bible that keep making tragic mistakes that affect their lives and those around them for the very worse. Great read about attaining what you want by any means necessary with hellacious consequences. Good read, great prose.

"The Monk" has all the great elements of Gothic fiction: an innocent maiden, her charming suitor, an evil monk, sadistic nuns, the Catholic Church, a scary monastery, graveyards, the supernatural...and that's without giving away any of the plot. The reader follows the story of monk Ambrosio, from his days as a righteous spiritual leader to his first sin and, finally, on his journey of ever-degrading morality. Initially, it's hard not to feel sympathetic for the monk because of the way he was led into sinning. However, that sympathy rapidly disappears as we are led deeper and deeper into his depraved plot to seduce - and, when he cannot seduce, to take by force - the young, virtuous Antonia. While it can at times feel a little "overdone," as if the writer were throwing in as many Gothic conventions as he could get his hands on just for the sake of making the novel "more Gothic," the story is rife with genuine tragedy and terror (I don't recommend reading it at night!) that is sure to keep the reader holding his or her breath, wondering what will happen next.

We sometimes think that only good horror stories can be written today because folks in earlier times didn't have the ability to convey terror adequately. This book dispells that notion completely. Although it was written more than 200 years ago, in many ways it appears contemporary.

The plot is a bit convoluted, but it certainly moves along at a fast pace. Although there is not much character development, and it's difficult at times to sepatate the Dons, things such as that can be ignored by reading on into the story. Also, there is a lot of unnecessary dialogue, which seems common for the time, but skimming parts can be helpful, and the reader won't miss anything important.

While the book has definite sexual overtones, the mores of the time in which it was written kept the author from being more graphic in his details. That doesn't detract from the tale, because he does give enough detail to let the reader know what is happening. There are quite a group of characters, and following along can get somewhat confusing.

The scenes are well set, and there is an overwhelming feeling of terror and evil permeating the entire book. This book throws in everything but the kitchen sink! Some of the scenes, even with the writing constraints of the time, are truly frightening, and the many different appearances of Lucifer can bedazzle the reader, as they did the title character.

In the end goodness prevails (mostly) and the evildoers receive their just punishment, so think of this as a semi-modern morality play. Open the book, buckle on your seat belt, and go along for a thrilling ride!

The Monk is a wonderful book with a complex, fast paced, interwoven story. A number of characters taking the lead in various subplots which finally coming together at the the end in a sensible whole. Just as you get to a crisis in one story line, you switch to another subplot which heightens the suspense of the story. The characters are well written and likeable, with very human failings. Even the title character, the monk, who becomes the villain of the piece is somewhat sympathetic. The secondary characters are well written and often comic which creates a needed break from the gothic horror.

The book deeply condemns the monastic lifestyle and the conduct of certain members of the church. The author clearly has no respect for monks and nuns who remove themselves from life into an abbey. He feels the lifestyle promotes hypocracy and superstition, causes sin to be avoided through lack of opportunity rather than resisted (which is not truely being good), and keeps the members from thinking for themselves or providing true service to the world.

Overall, it is a fascinating tale and an interesting social commentary.