Corruption- Matthew Lewis The Monk Chapters 6 and 7

Context

If a demon succeeds in tempting a character, it is seldom satisfied with this single transgression;
instead, its longer-term goals include:
o Getting the character to betray those closest to them
o Getting the character to go against their own core values
This effort constitutes destruction of the characters integrity, i.e. get them to act in a manner
that renders them unrecognizable to themselves and/or their loved ones
o Corruption can thus be thought of as a sort of villains quest in contrast to the heros
quest both quests transform the character, but in opposite ways

Aftermath of passion

How does Ambrosio feel in the immediate aftermath of his activities with Matilda?
What does Matilda say to try to reassure him? How compelling is her argument?
What rationale(s) does Ambrosio use to persuade himself to continue his activities with
Matilda? How does this rationalizing affect your view of his character?

Matildas argument

Points made by Matilda:

o He shouldnt reproach her re: what hes lost when actually she has lost more than he
has
o Celibacy is unnatural
o God would not have made love so enjoyable if he didnt want people to enjoy it
o Note that many of Matildas points are ones that modern people may have some
sympathy with:
o Womens sexual behavior is traditionally (and still today) judged more harshly than
mens; Matilda observes & rejects this double standard
o Many people agree that desire for sex is a natural urge

Ambrosios rationalizations

A few noteworthy points early in this chapter:

o P. 2: He had already committed the crime, and why should he refrain from enjoying its
reward?
o P. 2: the voluptuous monk trembled less for his Preservers life than his Concubines.
Deprived of her, he could not easily find another
o P. 3: But what he wanted in purity of heart, he supplied by exterior sanctity Thus did
he unconsciously add hypocrisy to perjury & incontinence; he had fallen into the latter
errors from yielding to seduction almost irresistible; but now he was guilty of a
voluntary fault by endeavoring to conceal

P. 4: He trusted easily to be forgiven so slight and natural a deviation from his vows:
But he forgot that having pronounced those vows, incontinence, in laymen the most
venial of errors, became in his person the most heinous of crimes.

The beginnings of corruption

Significance of the previous quotes:

o All or nothing thinking: rationalization that, if one is already guilty, one may as well
just do whatever one wants instead of trying to minimize guilt
o Selfishness sets in: his primary motivation for wanting to save Matildas life is now for
his sake, not hers, despite their previously-established friendship
o Hypocrisy: since sanctity is perceived as an effective way of hiding sin, the first evil
thereby produces a second
See also: the Devil as the Father of Lies
Lewis phrasing suggests that to the author, this is Ambrosios larger fault
Re-contextualization: this is the dark side version of someone saying in the grand scheme of
things, that wasnt so bad might make you feel better, but here serves to minimize the
transgression

Matilda saves herself

Why do Ambrosio and Matilda wind up talking about the past situation with Agnes? What does
Ambrosio now want to do, and what advice does Matilda give him about the matter?
Ambrosio begins to notice that Matilda has changed. What does this change consist in, and
what is his reaction to it?

Matilda the bad influence

Matildas advice re: Agnes is insidious because:

o Pragmatically, she does have a point re: avoiding suspicion
o But she encourages evil by:
Pointing out advantages of hypocrisy
Discouraging compassion
P. 7: Pity is a sentiment so natural, so appropriate to the female character, that it is scarcely a
merit for a woman to possess it, but to be without it is a grievous crime.
o On one hand, its perhaps fair for Ambrosio to feel misled by the change in Matildas
personality
o On the other hand, is there misogyny, here, i.e. since shes a woman, how dare she be
so independent instead of being focused solely on other people?

Some generalizations

P. 9: What happens as Matilda and Ambrosio continue to associate with one another?
P. 10-11: What does Lewis then tell us about Ambrosios natural personality vs. how life in the
monastery has affected him?

In both of these sections, does it seem like Lewis is trying to use the characters situations to
support more general statements about human nature? If so, what is he trying to tell the
reader?

Lewis on men vs. women

P. 9: Possession, which cloys man, only increases the affection of woman.

o This framing turns the situation into something (allegedly) universal, rather than
something pertaining only to these two specific characters
o Subtext of Ambrosio wouldnt have turned out so bad if Matilda wasnt putting out too
much + being clingy?
o In any case, several points in this section re: how routine aggravates corruption:
Not getting caught over time makes him feel transgression is safe
Boredom causes him to long for new transgressions

Lewis on human nature

Positive qualities Ambrosio supposedly had by nature:

o Enterprising
o Generosity
o Intelligence
Like Agnes, Ambrosio is not suited to the cloister, which Lewis presents as encouraging contrary
traits:
o Superstitious & afraid of the world
o Severe & judgmental toward others
Because of this clash, he has a contradictory nature a Jekyll/Hyde disposition not unlike that
of many other gothic anti-heroes
The thesis of Lewis essay here is that Ambrosio could have turned out okay if his nature &
urges had not been so deformed by asceticism & superstition
o This is more precise than just blaming it on religion its not all / every aspect of
religion, but rather these specific aspects

Antonias request

How might Ambrosios regular duties as a member of the clergy expose him to temptation? If
he sighs impatiently for variety, why has he not yet given in to this temptation?
Why does Ambrosio become so captivated with Antonia? How does his passion regarding
Antonia contrast with his passion regarding Matilda, and what effect does the former have upon
the latter?

The effects of naivety

The idea that confession risks multiplying sins instead of absolving them would be familiar to
Protestants of Lewis day
Since Ambrosio has been sheltered in the monastery all his life (he showed up on its doorstep as
a baby):

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He has no perspective on how corruptible people are i.e. probably could have any
woman he wanted
Just as well that he doesnt though, to avoid risk
Ironically, he and Antonia both have things turn out badly for them in part on account of
their naivety

About Antonia

Introduced in the first chapter of the novel as angelic and innocent

Ambrosios initial feelings about her are actually surprisingly elevated:
o P. 13 Her very tears became her, and her affliction seemed to add new lustre to her
charms = she inspires pity
o P. 14: tenderness, admiration, and respect
o Initially repelled by the idea of seducing her
o Even says he wants to inspire virtue in her nostalgia maybe for what he has lost
himself?

A dangerous influence?

How do Antonia & her mother contrast with one another re: optimism vs. pessimism?
How do Ambrosios feelings for Antonia change as he gets to know her better? In connection
with this, how does Ambrosio attempt to corrupt Antonia? Is he successful?
What is Ambrosios immediate concern when he sees that Antonia has been reading the Bible?
Why does this concern turn out to be unwarranted?
When Ambrosio does make an overt attempt on Antonia, and Elvira catches him, what factors
limit her ability to protect Antonia from him in the future?

About Elvira

Elviras pessimism stems from a tragic past:

o Married a nobleman whose father hated her
o When she and the noble fled to the Indies, she left her firstborn son behind, whom her
father-in-law caused to disappear
o Various deaths (both Elviras husband and his father) have caused her income to be cut
off, leaving her destitute
o She came to Madrid to seek help from her brother-in-law Raymond. Hence the
interconnection of the characters:
Raymond is Agnes beloved
Agnes is Lorenzos sister
Lorenzo is Raymonds close friend

More re: corruption

Another illustration in this section of the role that routine plays in corruption:
o Boredom + pride = longing for a challenge; i.e. once hes used to Antonia, he ceases to
hold her in awe and does want to seduce her

Antonia is not so much stupid as just sheltered

(hence her optimism in contrast to her mother):
o Intelligent & virtuous enough to detect his bad arguments
o He confuses her with his eloquence though, so that she is kept off-balance and it
doesnt look like he is losing
o Demonstrates how corruption has a hard time succeeding without an initial fall-totemptation: Antonia doesnt even know what she wants, so how can he go about
tempting her?

About that bit re: The Bible

P. 20-21: this part about the Bible nearly got Lewis banned when The Monk was first
published:
o Its one thing if he can spin his novel as boo to Catholicism, as the English in his day
did not like Catholics much in general
o But his fellow Protestants took exception to him portraying the Bible itself as a possible
source of corruption
What is Lewis actually referring to though re: parts Elvira would want to censor? Possibly
something like the story of Lot, which involves:
o The background of why the word sodomy means what it means
o Incest between Lot & his daughters

Elviras tribulations

Elviras ability to protect Antonia is limited in that:

o She is torn re: whether innocence or knowledge is the best way forward: should she
educate her daughter or will that give her ideas?
o Ambrosio is an illustrious religious figure vs. she is a poor, ill woman with few
connections in the city
Two very common themes of gothic literature are thus presented here:
o Innocence makes characters vulnerable to destruction
Any character with power is guaranteed to abuse that power

Help from Matilda

Why is Ambrosio initially opposed to Matildas offer to help him? What overcomes his
opposition?
What impact does the ritual have upon Ambrosio is he frightened, surprised, etc.? How is this
likely to influence his future willingness to resort to the occult?

Lucifer, the Daemon

His appearance here very much reflects ancient ideas of the fallen angel rather than any
medieval version of the Devil
The term Daemon is appropriate given that ambiguity: whats happening is certainly
mysterious & threatening, but not as overtly evil as Ambrosio had feared / expected
Note though Lucifer is basically acting as a drug dealer here:

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First time is free = Matilda getting the myrtle branch

Next time you have to pay = the daemon is not willing to benefit Ambrosio a second
time unless Ambrosio makes the pact himself

Summary

Some aspects of corruption portrayed in these chapters:

o Typical rationalizations: all or nothing, re-contextualization
o Tendency toward selfishness & hypocrisy
o Routine as an aggravating factor, fostering both complacency & boredom
o Naivety can be an obstacle to corruption via missed opportunities, but can also foster
corruption by making a character vulnerable to being taken advantage of
o Tendency to blame female characters for male characters behavior
o Long-term goal of corruption is to get the character to betray everything they allegedly
stand for a moment typically marked by the signing of the pact (see next lecture)