The Monk
1796 novel by Matthew Lewis
The Monk: A Romance is a Gothic novel by Matthew Gregory Lewis, published in 1796 across three volumes. Written early in Lewis's career, it was published anonymously when he was 20. It tells the story of a virtuous Catholic monk who gives in to his violent and lustful urges, setting off a chain of events that leave him damned. It is a prime example of the type of Gothic that specializes in horror.
Upon publication, the novel proved scandalous. Readers were shocked by its sexually explicit content, and themes of rape and incest, leading it to become arguably the most controversial Gothic novel of the 18th century. Amidst a public outcry, the novel became hugely popular. Over time, Lewis came to feel that its writing had been in poor taste. Later editions were heavily censored by the author himself.
The Monk is considered part of the gothic literary canon, a forerunner to the popular Gothic novels of the 19th century, and an influence on the modern horror genre.
The public source identifies “The Monk” as 1796 novel by Matthew Lewis. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Monk, novel and Matthew.
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Object files, edition statements, performance records and contemporary criticism preserve different stages of the work’s history. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 8, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q2659564. 2 of 2 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1796.
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This entry incorporates text from “The Monk” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.