The MonkA pious monk is driven by sexual desire into the depths of sin and depravity in this eighteenth-century classic of Gothic fiction. Ambrosio is the abbot of the Capuchin monastery in Madrid. He is beloved by his flock, and his renowned piety has earned him the nickname The Man of Holiness. Yet beneath the veneer of this religious man lies a heart of hypocrisy; arrogant, licentious, and vengeful, he follows his sexual desires down the torturous path to ruin. Along the way, he encounters a naïve virgin who falls prey to his scheming, a baleful beauty fluent in witchcraft, the ghostly Bleeding Nun, an evil prioress, the Wandering Jew, and Lucifer himself. Matthew Lewis’s The Monk shocked and titillated readers with its graphic portrayal of lust, sin, and violence when it was first published in 1796. It was so controversial that the House of Commons—of which Lewis was a member—pronounced him licentious and perverse. A true classic of the Gothic novel, it left an indelible mark on English literature and has influenced such eminent writers as Byron, Scott, Poe, Flaubert, Hawthorne, Emily Brontë, and many others. This edition of The Monk, set from the unexpurgated first edition, includes an introduction by John Berryman. |
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45 omit abbey abbot affection Agnes already Ambrosio Antonia arms baroness beheld bosom Capuchins castle chamber charms Cisternas Clare concealed convent convinced countenance courser cried crime dæmon danger daughter death declared despair domina Don Christoval Don Ramirez Donna door dreadful drew Elvira endeavoured enquired escape exclaimed eyes father favour fear Flora friar gazed ghost Gothic novel hand hastened hastily hear heard heart heaven hope horror hour Jacintha lady lamp las Cisternas length Leonella Lindenberg lips listened look Lorenzo lust Madrid Marguerite marquis Matilda Medina melancholy mistress monk mother never night nuns obliged passed passion perceived pleasure present prioress promised quit Raymond Raymond and Agnes received religious habit replied retired returned Rosario round Sally Green scarcely seat secret seemed Segnor sentiments shriek silence sister soon soul Spain spectre stranger Strasbourg strove sufferings terror Theodore threw trembled vaults voice vows wish woman youth