History Literature / TheMonk

* BrotherSisterIncest[=/=]SurpriseIncest: It's a Gothic novel, it had to happen somewhere. [[spoiler: As it turns out, Antonia and Ambrosio have the same mother. As if his raping her wasn't bad enough.]]

* BrainFever: Raymond after he gets words of Agnes' "death." There are implications that this is what happened to Sister Carmilla, Agnes' jailer, as she is torn between her loyalty to the [[CreepyNun Prioress]] and common humanity towards Agnes' suffering.

* BrainFever: Raymond after he gets words of Agnes' "death." There are implications that this is what happened to Sister Carmilla, Agnes' jailer, as she is torn between her loyalty to the [[CrrepyNun Prioress]] and common humanity towards Agnes' suffering.

** The Prioress gets ripped to shreds by an angry mob, along with her co-conspirators. Worse, the same fate befalls other, innocent nuns of the convent who the mob declares GuiltyByAssociation.
** [[spoiler:Ambrosio]] is dropped from a cliff by Satan, shattering his body, but leaving him just barely alive. He then spends six days paralyzed and in excruciating pain as wild animals slowly tear him apart, and only dies on the seventh day when he is drowned by sudden rainstorm.

* [[spoiler: BittersweetEnding: ''Borders'' on a [[DownerEnding downer,]] but with enough sweetness to keep from being wholly depressing. Ambrosio and the Prioress are exposed and [[KarmicDeath punished,]] but [[BreakTheCutie Antonia]] [[RapeAsDrama is not only raped by Ambrosio,]] [[KillTheCutie but murdered]] [[ShootTheShaggyDog in Ambrosio's vain attempt to keep his sins hidden.]] Agnes, however, survives despite her torture and the loss of her baby, and ends up recovering and become HappilyMarried with Raymond. Lorenzo is left grief-stricken by Antonia's death, but ultimately moves on, and finds a second love with one of the nuns' pensioners who's left the convent, who he helped to keep safe from the angry mob. All in all, [[LaserGuidedKarma the villains got their comeuppance,]] [[PyrrhicVictory but not without causing some]] [[BeingGoodSucks lasting damage by the time it happens.]]]]

* CruelAndUnusualDeath: Even for a woman as heartless as the prioress. She gets ripped to shreds by an angry mob, along with her co-conspirators. Worse, the same fate befalls other, innocent nuns of the convent who the mob declares GuiltyByAssociation.
** Ambrosio's long drawn out death is another example.Even considering all he has done, the sort of death the wretched monk dies is almost (just almost) enough to prompt an AlasPoorVillain.

* FaithHeelTurn: Ambrosio.

* GhostStory: There's a very long detour from the main plot to tell one.

* BigDamnHeroes: Lorenzo does his best to do this when he tries to save Antonia [[spoiler: but she's already dying and she says it's all right since she's been defiled.]]

* BlackMagic: So Ambrosio can seduce Antonia.
* BrainFever: Raymond after he gets words of Agnes' "death."

* BuriedAlive: Ambrosio keeps Antonia in [[AncientTomb a tomb]] for a while.

* CreepyCathedral: And creepy monastery and creepy nunnery.
* CruelAndUnusualDeath: Even for a woman as heartless as the prioress. She gets ripped to shreds by an angry mob.

* TheDevilIsALoser: [[spoiler: Inverted. Satan here is scarily competent, leading Ambrosio from lifelong virtue into utter depravity in a matter of weeks. ]]

* DistressedDamsel: Agnes and Antonia both get their chance to fill this roll.

* Flying Dutchman: The Wandering Jew makes an appearance in Don Raymond's backstory -- he is the exorcist who banishes the Bleeding Nun from Raymond's presence.

* The WanderingJew: He makes an appearance in Don Raymond's backstory -- he is the exorcist who banishes the Bleeding Nun from Raymond's presence.

* InnocenceVirginOnStupidity: Antonia, to the point where she theorizes that Ambrosio was "born in the abbey."

* The WanderingJew also makes an appearance in Don Raymond's backstory—he is the exorcist who banishes the Bleeding Nun from Raymond's presence.

* [[spoiler: BittersweetEnding: ''Borders'' on a [[DownerEnding downer,]] but with enough sweetness to keep from being wholly depressing. Ambrosio and the Prioress are exposed and [[KarmicDeath punished,]] but [[BreakTheCutie Antonia]] [[RapeAsDrama is not only raped by Ambrosio,]] [[KillTheCutie but murdered]] [[ShootTheShaggyDog in Ambrosio's vain attempt to keep his sins hidden.]] Agnes, however, survives, despite her torture, and the loss of her baby, and ends up recovering and become HappilyMarried with Raymond. Lorenzo is left grief-stricken by Antonia's death, but ultimately moves on, and finds a second love with one of the nuns' pensioners who's left the convent he
kept safe from the angry mob. All in all, [[LaserGuidedKarma the villains got their comeuppance,]] [[PyrrhicVictory but not without causing some]] [[BeingGoodSucks lasting damage by the time it happens.]]]]

* [[spoiler: BittersweetEnding: ''Borders'' on a [[DownerEnding downer,]] but with enough sweetness to keep from being wholly depressing. Ambrosio and the prioress are exposed and [[KarmicDeath punished,]] but [[BreakTheCutie Antonia]] [[RapeAsDrama is not only raped by Ambrosio,]] [[KillTheCutie but murdered]] [[ShootTheShaggyDog in Ambrosio's vain attempt to keep his sins hidden.]] Agnes, however, survives, despite her torture, and the loss of her baby, and ends up recovering and become HappilyMarried with Raymond. Lorenzo is left grief stricken by Antonia's death, but ultimately moves on, and finds a second love with one of the nuns who've left the convent he and Raymond kept safe from the angry mob. All in all, [[LaserGuidedKarma the villains got their comeuppance,]] [[PyrrhicVictory but not without causing some]] [[BeingGoodSucks lasting damage by the time it happens.]]]]

* AdaptationalHeroUpgrade: In both movie adaptations Ambrosio is portrayed somewhat more sympathetically (in the 2011 movie he specifically asks Satan to heal Antonia's damaged mind).

* GenreSavvy: Theodore

** Antonia could really be considered a {{Deconstruction}} of this trope, though it's hard to say whether it's intentional or not. Her purity makes her incredibly likeable, but that purity stems from her being from being sheltered from the outside world, [[MoralGuardians particularly its harsher and less comfortable aspects.]] Consequently, she is completely naive about the ways of the world, makes all the wrong and foolish decisions because of that naivety, and is blind to Ambrosio's true nature until it is far too late.

* Rape Is Love: This is Antonio's justification for raping [[spoiler: Antonia]]. Of course, afterward he is disgusted with her because she is no longer pure and kills her.

First published in 1796, ''The Monk'' is considered a classic of GothicFiction and one of the most influential novels of the genre, though some also consider it to be something of an AffectionateParody as well. It was published almost thirty years after ''Literature/TheCastleOfOtranto'', which is considered to be the first Gothic novel. The author, Matthew Gregory Lewis, was a [[TeenGenius nineteen-year-old]] English diplomat who penned the novel in a mere ten weeks. The book became an instant success, scandalizing and entrancing the reading public. None of his other works were nearly so successful as this first effort. Indeed, the work was so strongly identified as [[OneHitWonder Lewis's greatest success]] that he was, and is, referred to as [[OnlyKnownByTheirNickname "Monk" Lewis]].

* DirtyOldMonk: He's about thirty, so not very old, but ''certainly'' very dirty.

* AManIsNotAVirgin: Initially averted and later played straight with Ambrosio when he breaks his vow of chastity with Matilda.

First published in 1796, '''''The Monk''''' is considered a classic of GothicFiction and one of the most influential novels of the genre, though some also consider it to be something of an AffectionateParody as well. It was published almost thirty years after ''Literature/TheCastleOfOtranto'', which is considered to be the first Gothic novel. The author, Matthew Gregory Lewis, was a [[TeenGenius nineteen-year-old]] English diplomat who penned the novel in a mere ten weeks. The book became an instant success, scandalizing and entrancing the reading public. None of his other works were nearly so successful as this first effort. Indeed, the work was so strongly identified as [[OneHitWonder Lewis's greatest success]] that he was, and is, referred to as [[OnlyKnownByTheirNickname "Monk" Lewis]].

Madrid, Spain, at the time of the UsefulNotes/SpanishInquisition. Mere minutes after the cathedral doors open, the pews are packed with people come to hear the famous monk Ambrosio give his sermon. Ambrosio is young, [[SexyPriest handsome]], and considered incorruptible because he has never broken a rule of his order. But Ambrosio, for all his holiness, is a proud man. In the crowd waiting to hear him are a [[TheIngenue beautiful girl]], Antonia, and her MaidenAunt, Leonella, who meet a pair of gallant young men, Don Lorenzo and Don Christoval. Antonia and Lorenzo fall in LoveAtFirstSight and Lorenzo vows to marry her.

** Antonia could really be considered a {{Deconstruction}} of this trope, though it's hard to say whether it's intentional or not. Her purity makes her incredibly likeable, but that purity stems from her being from being sheltered from the outside world, [[MoralGuardians particularly it's harsher and less comfortable aspects.]] Consequently, she is completely naive about the ways of the world, makes all the wrong and foolish decisions because of that naivety, and is blind to Ambrosio's true nature until it is far too late.

But this is only the beginning of Ambrosio's descent into sin, and soon all of their paths will collide tragically. To say it gets worse is an understatement.

* {{Demons}}: Matilda very likely is one.

* TheDevilIsALoser: [[spoiler: Inverted. Satan here is scarily competent, leading Ambrosio from lifelong virtue into utter depravity in a matter of weeks. ]]

* Foil: The prioress is this to Ambrosio. Whereas Ambrosio strays from the path of good by breaking the rules of his order, the prioress does this by adhering to them to the point of cruelty.

* TheDevilIsaLoser: [[spoiler: Inverted. Satan here is scarily competent, leading Ambrosio from lifelong virtue into utter depravity in a matter of weeks. ]]