Satire in 'The Monk': Exposure and Reformation

Matthew Lewis punctuates the plot of The Monk (1796) with several bizarre, grisly and pornographic episodes; this "excessive, maniacal movement from one orgiastic episode to another," as Alok Bhalla has described it, makes it difficult to discern any clear narrative progression in the novel. A plot synopsis of The Monk would probably follow Ambrosio's moral debasement, necessarily excluding most of the characters that populate the novel. These minor characters and forgettable exchanges are frequently satiric. Satire permeates the novel, obtruding into even the most gruesome scenes, but seems most significant when incidental.