The Monk
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{{infobox Book | <!-- See [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Novels]] or [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Books]] -->
| name = The Monk
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| author = [[Matthew Gregory Lewis]]
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| language = [[English language|English]]
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| genre = [[Gothic novel]]
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| release_date = [[1796 in literature|1796]]
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| media_type = Print ([[novel]])
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'''''Ambrosio, or the Monk''''' is a [[Gothic fiction|Gothic novel]] by [[Matthew Gregory Lewis]] which first appeared in [[1796]]. It was written before the author turned 20, in the space of 10 weeks.
==Plot summary==
The story concerns Ambrosio - a pious, well-respected [[monk]] in [[Spain]] - and his violent downfall. He is undone by carnal lust for his pupil, a woman disguised as a monk (Matilda), who tempts him to transgress, and, once satisfied by her, is overcome with desire for the innocent Antonia. Using magic spells Matilda aids him in seducing Antonia, whom he later rapes and kills. Matilda is eventually revealed as an instrument of Satan in female form, who has orchestrated Ambrosio's downfall from the start. In the middle of telling this story Lewis frequently makes further digressions, which serve to heighten the Gothic atmosphere of the tale while doing little to move along the main plot. A lengthy story about a "Bleeding Nun" is told, and many incidental verses are introduced. A second romance, between Lorenzo and Antonia, also gives way to a tale of Lorenzo's sister being tortured by hypocritical nuns (as a result of a third romantic plot). Eventually, the story catches back up with Ambrosio, and in several pages of impassioned prose, Ambrosio is delivered into the hands of the [[Inquisition]]; he escapes by selling his soul to the [[devil]] for his deliverance from the death sentence which awaits him. The story ends with the devil preventing Ambrosio's attempted final repentance, and the sinful monk's prolonged torturous death.
===Critique===
''The Monk'' is remembered for being one of the more lurid and "[[transgressional fiction|transgressive]]" of Gothic novels. It is also the first book to feature a priest as the villain. In this respect it would serve as a model for such future works of literature as ''[[The Hunchback of Notre Dame]]''.
Featuring [[demon]]ic pacts, [[rape]], [[incest]], and such props as the [[Wandering Jew]], ruined [[castle]]s, and the Spanish Inquisition, ''The Monk'' serves more or less as a compendium of Gothic taste. Ambrosio, the hypocrite foiled by his own lust, and his sexual misconduct inside the walls of [[convent]]s and [[monastery|monasteries]], is a vividly portrayed [[villain]], as well as an embodiment of much of the traditional [[England|English]] mistrust of [[Roman Catholicism]], with its intrusive [[penance|confessional]], its political and religious authoritarianism, and its cloistered lifestyles. The [[United States|American]] fictitious anti-Catholic [[libel]], ''The Awful Disclosures of [[Maria Monk]]'', borrowed much from the plot of this novel. Despite the critics' comments on its crudeness and lack of depth, it proved to be one of the most popular novels of the Romantic Period.
It is among the many Gothic works referenced in the [[Jane Austen]] novel ''[[Northanger Abbey]]''.
==Adaptations==
[[Verdi]] had wanted to do an operatic adaptation of the book but was dissuaded on the grounds of its scandalous content.
[[Luis Buñuel]] and [[Jean-Claude Carrière]] attempted to film a version of ''The Monk'' in the 1960s, but the project was halted due to lack of funds.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.radiotimes.com/servlet_film/com.icl.beeb.rtfilms.client.simpleSearchServlet?searchTypeSelect=5&frn=37711 | title=Radio Times - Film Review | publisher=Radio Times | work=www.radiotimes.com | accessdate=2007-04-05}}</ref> Buñuel's friend, the [[Greek people|Greek]] director [[Adonis Kyrou|Ado Kyrou]], used this script as the basis for his 1972 film version. ''Le Moine'' ([[English language|English]] ''The Monk'') boasted an international cast with [[Franco Nero]] in the title role. The film also starred Nathalie Delon, Eliana de Santis, [[Nadja Tiller]] and [[Nicol Williamson]].<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.channel4.com/film/reviews/film.jsp?id=106094 | title=The Monk (1972) - Channel 4 Film Review | publisher=Film4 | work=www.channel4.com | accessdate=2007-04-05}}</ref>
In [[1990]] a film adaptation of ''The Monk'' was produced by Celtic Films. It starred [[Paul McGann]] as the title character, and was written and directed by [[Francisco Lara Polop]].<ref>http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0099609/plotsummary ''The Monk'' at [[imdb]]</ref>
==References==
{{reflist}}
==External links==
*[http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/toc/modeng/public/LewMonk.html The Monk]
*{{gutenberg|no=601|name=The Monk}}
*[http://www.litcrazy.com/index.php/2007/03/17/essay-on-matthew-lewiss-novel-the-monk/ The Monk, Essay: The Monk and Gothic Tendency]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Monk}}
[[Category:1796 novels]]
[[Category:Gothic novels]]
[[es:El Monje]]
[[fr:Le Moine]]
[[it:Il monaco]]