The Monk: A Romance 줄거리

The story in 10 parts

1. Key idea 1 · free to read

   A packed church comes to hear a saint

   The book opens in the Capuchin Church in Madrid, and the narrator mocks the crowd at once. Few have come out of devotion. The women come to be seen, and the men come to see the women.

   In the crush stand the talkative Leonella and her shy niece Antonia, who is scarcely fifteen. Two young noblemen, Lorenzo de Medina and his friend Don Christoval, offer them seats. Then the talk turns to the preacher. Ambrosio was left as a baby at the abbey door and has spent thirty years in study and self denial. The people call him the Man of Holiness.

   When he speaks, the whole church falls silent. Listeners tremble at his talk of damnation and are comforted by his talk of a clear conscience. Lorenzo warns gently that a man tested for the first time at thirty may not stand so firmly. As Ambrosio leaves, the crowd fights over the beads of his rosary.

   A reputation built on distance from the world has never yet been tested by the world.

2. 2

   A veiled girl, a dream, and a secret letter

   Lorenzo falls in love with Antonia in a single afternoon.

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3. 3

   Ambrosio's stern verdict on a young nun

   Ambrosio hears the nuns of Saint Clare confess.

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4. 4

   Rosario's confession changes everything in the garden

   Ambrosio has a favorite among his monks, a young novice named Rosario, who always hides his face in his cowl.

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5. 5

   A bite, a sacrifice, and a night that cannot be undone

   The bite is thought to be deadly.

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6. 6

   Raymond's tale of robbers and a bleeding ghost

   A large middle section hands the story to Raymond, who tells Lorenzo how he came to love Agnes.

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7. 7

   Desire turns toward Antonia and a mother grows watchful

   Back in the abbey, Ambrosio is bored with Matilda and haunted by the memory of Antonia.

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8. 8

   Sorcery in the vaults and a spell for entering rooms

   Matilda confesses that she has studied dark arts and has already called up a spirit.

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9. 9

   The book asks what real virtue is made of

   The central question of the book is whether Ambrosio was ever good.

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10. 10

    How the story is told, with ghosts, songs, and sly humor

    The Monk is built like a set of rooms opening into other rooms.

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