The Monk: A Romance

In what ways do the characters in The Monk cross gender boundaries? How does Lewis portray deviations from gender norms in the novel?

Several characters in The Monk criticize religious “superstitions” as false and irrational. At the same time, the novel is full of supernatural happenings. Write an essay comparing “superstition” with the supernatural in The Monk.

How does the legend of the Bleeding Nun reflect the major themes of The Monk?

Why do you think Lewis presents the history of Agnes’s imprisonment in the first person? What does he gain by employing first-person narration in this section of the novel?

Scholars have compared the character of Matilda to a Jacobin, or a supporter of the French Revolution. In what ways does Matilda espouse “revolutionary” ideas in The Monk?

How would you define Ambrosio’s role in The Monk? Is he the novel’s hero, protagonist, antihero, or villain?

Lewis includes songs, poems, and ballads throughout The Monk. Choose one of these pieces and analyze how it comments on and develops one of the novel’s key themes.

Many readers and scholars have described The Monk as an anti-Catholic novel. Which elements of the novel might support this reading?