The Monk: Amazon.ca: Matthew Lewis, Kathryn White: Books

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“The whole work is distinguished by the variety and impressiveness of its incidents; and the author every-where discovers an imagination rich, powerful, and fervid.” —Samuel Taylor Coleridge --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Book Description

Prepare to be shocked. This novel, written in 1796, is a Gothic festival of sex, magic and ghastly, ghostly violence rarely seen in literature. The Monk is remarkably modern in style and tells a breathless tale of temptation, imprisonment and betrayal. Matthew Lewis recounts the downfall of Ambrosio, the holier-than-thou monk seduced within the walls of a Madrid abbey until he heads for the utter corruption of the soul. Meanwhile, two sets of young lovers are thwarted and the reader thrills to pursuits through the woods by bandits and is chilled by the spectre of nuns imprisoned in vermin-ridden and skeleton-crowded vaults. Late Eighteenth Century audiences were polarised in opinion as to the novel's merits. Lord Byron and the Marquis de Sade were impressed by Lewis's daring, while Coleridge warned parents against The Monk's suitability for their sons or daughters, describing the novel as 'poison for youth. If you want a novel that still terrifies, over two hundred years after it was written, there is none finer than The Monk.

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First Sentence
SCARCELY had the abbey-bell tolled for five minutes, and already was the church of the Capuchins thronged with auditors. Read the first page

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Customer Reviews

22 Reviews

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Average Customer Review

4.3 out of 5 stars (22 customer reviews)

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5.0 out of 5 stars just awesome, Mar 12 2005

By

John Egbe (Atlanta,GA, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Monk (Hardcover)

Written by Matthew Lewis during a short period of ten short weeks when he was just nineteen, "The Monk" proved to be a controversial novel at the time that it was written. Faith, deception, loyalty, sorcery, murder, Satanism, incest, rape, ghosts, and the inquisition gave the novel the popularity it has retained until today. Even though its plot made the novel controversial when it was published in 1796 to the point where it as held to be blasphemous and resulted to censorship, Lewis nevertheless gained in popularity.
The story is basically about Ambrosio, who as an enfant was found at the doors of the abbey, stirring talks that he was a divine-sent child. He grew up to become an ostensibly pious and deeply revered Abbot of the Capuchin monastery in Madrid, a fit in holiness that aroused the resentment of the devil who decides to plot his fall. The devil plotted the fall through the working of a young female who disguised and became a novice under the tutelage of Ambrioso, the immaculate monk. Ambrioso's fall is plotted through out the later stages of the novel as his fight with the deep passions of his body, the machinations of the devil and his attempts at redemption. Anti-Catholic in nature, this Gothic classic is perhaps the best in its genre. I am certain the author enjoyed every moment while he was writing it because the story flowed all the way through to the end. A recommended classic.
Also recommended: THE USURPER AND OTHER STORIES, THE MYSTERIES OF UDOLPHO, DISCIPLES OF FORTUNE, THE UNION MOUJIK

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3.0 out of 5 stars True Gothic Literature, July 24 2003

By

J. M. Hannam (Portland, OR United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Monk (Hardcover)

Matthew Lewis is by most people's accounts one of the forefathers of Gothic Literature. "The Monk" written in the late 18th century is an interesting tale about an Abbot whose vocation to God goes awry. The language of the text can sometimes be hard to follow if you are not accustomed to reading literature from that time period, but the story is nearly flawless. Lewis also places other characters of ill repute in the novel. My favorite being the Head nun of St. Clare's, in my opinion she is more of the villain than the monk. Throughout the tale the characters relate past tale's which can be tedious and boring at times, but do help to fill in any missing gaps the reader may have. All in all Lewis wrote a dark tale which will continue to be read for centuries to come, and his contribution to the Gothic novel will never be forgotten.

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4.0 out of 5 stars Still a good read, April 20 2003

By

Annette Hrisko-Allen (pdx,usa) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Monk (Hardcover)

Even after two centuries, "The Monk" can still entertain readers while encouraging them to think about such weighty subjects as the coercisive power of religious hypocrisy.

Set in Madrid during the time of the Spanish Inquisition, the book's main story arc is the rise and fall of Ambrosio, a Capuchin friar who is initially regarded by everyone as a living saint. Lauded for his brilliant oratory skills and personal beauty, Ambrosio is courted by the richest women in the city to be their personal Confessor. As Ambrosio's fame increases, so does his vanity, and it is through this Deadly Sin that he enters into later acts of violence and depravity.

Lewis does a fine job of creating archetypal characters that are still used in genre fiction today. There is the Fallen Hero who becomes the Villian (Ambrosio), the Temptress (Rosario/Matilda), the Good Knights (Lorenzo and Don Raymond), and two Damsels in Distress (Agnes and Antonia). The author also provides a subordinate Villian (the Prioress of the Convent of St. Clare), who is in some ways more evil than Ambrosio.

For leavening in this very dark narrative, Lewis gives readers a trio of humorous characters: Leonella, Antonia's lusty aunt and chaperone; Flora, the very chatty chambermaid in Antonia's service; and Jacintha, the superstitious neighbor who swears that she sees ghosts everywhere.

The characterizations of Ambrosio and the Prioress are great examples of how power (whether it's spiritual or temporal) can corrupt. Neither character feels answerable to anyone. Even God isn't really present (although his Other Half puts in an appearance!) Lewis poses questions on personal accountability that are certainly relevant today, while deftly mixing in good character interaction and biting social commentary.

Highly recommended.

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Most recent customer reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars It's still shocking
Another reviewer was right: DON'T READ THE STEPHEN KING INTRODUCTION BEFORE YOU READ THE BOOK! If you do, it will give the whole plot away. Read more

Published on Mar 24 2003 by JR Pinto

5.0 out of 5 stars The most influential of the Gothic horror novels
The Monk is perhaps the most significant and certainly the most controversial of the Gothic novels of the late 18th century. Read more