The Monk
Published: 1796
Author: Mathew Lewis
Genres: 95/100, Adult, Classic, Drama, Fantasy, Fiction, Gothic, Horror, Literature, Magic, Romance, Suspense
Summary
There are two primary plotlines in The Monk. The first is about the monk Ambrosio's corruption and demise, as well as his contacts with the demon-in-disguise Matilda and the virtuous virgin Antonia. The relationship between Raymond and the nun Agnes is the focus of the subplot. The story also features numerous extensive accounts of people with Gothic backstories who share their stories at various moments.
Antonia, who has just arrived in Madrid, goes to hear a sermon by Ambrosio, who was abandoned at the monastery as a child and is now a well-known monk. She meets Lorenzo, who is smitten by her. Lorenzo pays a visit to his sister Agnes, who is a nun at the convent nearby. He notices someone bringing a letter from Raymond to Agnes. Nuns, including Agnes, later pay Ambrosio a visit for confession. When Agnes admits to being pregnant with Raymond's kid, Ambrosio sends her to her abbey's Prioress for punishment.
Among the monks, Ambrosio's closest buddy exposes himself to be a woman named Matilda, who disguised herself to be near Ambrosio. Ambrosio is bitten by a snake while selecting a rose for her and becomes fatally ill. Matilda looks after him. Matilda explains that she swallowed the poison from Ambrosio's wound and is now dying herself as he recovers. Matilda asks him to make love to her right before she dies, and he gives in to the temptation.
Raymond's connection with his sister Agnes is brought up by Lorenzo. Raymond recounts their lengthy relationship together. Raymond was traveling across Germany when he was stuck in a home owned by a robber who kills and robs travelers due to a carriage mishap. Raymond avoided being slain thanks to a warning from the bandit's wife and escaped with a Baroness who was also staying at the cottage. After that, when visiting the Baroness, Raymond fell in love with her niece Agnes. The Baroness, on the other hand, was madly in love with Raymond, and when he turned down her overtures, she made plans to transfer Agnes to a convent.
Raymond and Agnes decided to marry on the spur of the moment. Agnes intended to dress up as the Bleeding Nun, a ghost that haunts the castle and leaves at midnight. Raymond had an unintentional elopement with the real-life spirit of the real-life Bleeding Nun. The Wandering Jew was needed to help exorcise the ghost of the Bleeding Nun. When he was released, he went to the monastery and met Agnes. He seduced Agnes there. She begged him to help her flee when she found out she was pregnant.
Lorenzo offers to assist Raymond in eloping with Agnes when Raymond concludes his narrative. He obtains a papal bull that frees Agnes from her vows as a nun, allowing her to marry Raymond. When he brings it to the Prioress, however, she informs Lorenzo that Agnes had died a few days previously. Lorenzo doesn't believe it, but Agnes hasn't been heard from in over two months. Meanwhile, Lorenzo has obtained his family's approval for his marriage to Antonia.
Matilda heals herself of the poison by performing a ceremony at the graveyard after having sex with Ambrosio. She and Ambrosio remain secret lovers, but Ambrosio has had enough of her. When Ambrosio first meets Antonia, he is immediately drawn to her. He begins paying regular visits to Antonia's mother, Elvira, in the hopes of seducing Antonia. Ambrosio hugs Antonia on a visit, but she refuses. Elvira greets him and urges him to go. Matilda informs Ambrosio that she can assist him in obtaining Antonia's charms, in the same manner, she was cured of the poison: through witchcraft.
Ambrosio is in a state of shock. He accepts, though, when she shows him a magical mirror in which Antonia is swimming. Matilda and Ambrosio return to the cemetery, where Matilda summons Lucifer, a youthful and attractive figure. He provides Matilda with a magical myrtle twig that allows Ambrosio to access any door and satisfy his passion for Antonia without her realizing who is the ravisher. Ambrosio accepts without selling himself to the devil, he believes.
Raymond's servant disguises himself as a beggar and visits the monastery in an attempt to locate Agnes. Mother St. Ursula hands him a basket of goodies as he walks away, hiding a message instructing Raymond to have the cardinal arrest both Mother St. Ursula and the Prioress for Agnes' murder.
Ambrosio enters Antonia's bedroom with the magical bough. He is about to rape her when Elvira arrives and confronts him. Ambrosio kills Elvira in a frenzy and returns to the convent, dissatisfied with his passion and frightened that he has now become a murderer. Antonia, bereaved by her mother's death, encounters her mother's spirit. Antonia faints from fear and is discovered by her landlady, who summons Ambrosio for assistance. Matilda assists Ambrosio in obtaining a mixture that would place Antonia in a deathlike stupor. Ambrosio delivers the poison while caring for Antonia and Antonia seems to die.
Lorenzo returns to Madrid, accompanied by an Inquisition official. The Prioress is detained during a procession honoring Saint Clare. Agnes' death at the hands of the sisters is publicly described by Mother St. Ursula. The parade throng turns into a raging mob when they learn that the Prioress is a murderer. They assassinate the Prioress, assault other nuns, and set fire to the monastery. Lorenzo discovers a group of nuns and a young woman called Virginia sheltering in the crypt among the chaos.
Lorenzo finds Agnes alive and carrying the lifeless body of the infant she had given birth to while abandoned in the dungeon. Lorenzo saves Agnes and the other nuns from the vault with Virginia's aid. Meanwhile, in the crypt, Antonia awakens from her drugged slumber, and Ambrosio rapes her. After that, he's just as disgusted with Antonia as he was with Matilda, the woman who came to warn him about the incident. In an attempt to flee, Ambrosio murders Antonia.
Virginia pays Lorenzo a visit when he is grieving, and the two become closer. Agnes goes into great detail about her dreadful time in the prison. Agnes and Raymond marry, and the couple goes with Lorenzo and Virginia from Madrid to Raymond's castle, where they subsequently marry.
The Inquisition summons Ambrosio and Matilda to appear before it. Matilda admits her guilt and is condemned to death by fire. She sells her soul to the devil in return for her freedom and life before the punishment is carried out. Ambrosio is tormented because he insists on his innocence. Matilda appears to him and advises him to surrender his soul to Satan. Ambrosio protests his innocence again, but after being tortured, he admits to rape, murder, and magic, and is sentenced to death by fire.
Ambrosio, in desperation, requests Lucifer to spare his life, but he is told that it would cost him his soul. Ambrosio is hesitant to give up hope of God's forgiveness, but Lucifer assures him that it isn't possible. Ambrosio finally agrees to the contract after considerable deliberation. Lucifer takes him out of his dungeon and into the forest. Lucifer reveals that Elvira was his mother, making Antonia his sister, and adding incest to his list of sins. Ambrosio then discovers that he accepted Lucifer's offer only minutes before being pardoned.
Lucifer says that gaining Ambrosio's soul has been his objective for a long time, and Matilda was a demon assisting him. Lucifer then points out a flaw in Ambrosio's deal: Ambrosio simply wanted to be released from his confinement. Lucifer has completed his half of the contract and is now free to murder Ambrosio and take his soul. He lifts Ambrosio into the air and lands him on the cliffs below. Ambrosio endures for six days before dying alone and eternally cursed.
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Rating: 95/100
Recommended: 100/100 Yes.
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