Matthew Lewis was an English novelist and dramatist, often referred to as "Monk" Lewis, because of the success of his classic Gothic novel, The Monk. His scandalous masterpiece is one of the great works in the gay and lesbian literary tradition. Chief among his attachments was his love for William Kelly, the ne'er-do-well son of Mrs. Isabella Kelly, a gothic novelist with whom he corresponded, and to whom he offered various kinds of financial aid, among them the cost of educating her son. Lewis was involved with William for fifteen years, and though there is no proof of sexual involvement, Lewis did include the younger man in his will and speak of him always in affectionate, if frustrated terms. The question of Lewis's "homosexuality" has been debated by his biographers, such as Summers and Peck, but surely they have been asking the wrong questions. That Lewis was of an unconventional sexual makeup is clear in his life as well as his works. But whether or not anything about Lewis's own sexual behavior can be proved, The Monk is one of the great works in the gay and lesbian literary tradition. It is the story of frustrated desire expressed, at first anyway, as male-male love. Ambrosio, the hero of the novel, is a handsome monk above reproach in his private affairs. Then suddenly he finds himself involved with the emotions of a young (male) novice, whom he befriends and who becomes more and more tormenting to his solace.
Matthew Lewis was an English novelist and dramatist, often referred to as "Monk" Lewis, because of the success of his classic Gothic novel, The Monk. His scandalous masterpiece is one of the great works in the gay and lesbian literary tradition. Chief among his attachments was his love for William Kelly, the ne'er-do-well son of Mrs. Isabella Kelly, a gothic novelist with whom he corresponded, and to whom he offered various kinds of financial aid, among them the cost of educating her son. Lewis was involved with William for fifteen years, and though there is no proof of sexual involvement, Lewis did include the younger man in his will and speak of him always in affectionate, if frustrated terms. The question of Lewis's "homosexuality" has been debated by his biographers, such as Summers and Peck, but surely they have been asking the wrong questions. That Lewis was of an unconventional sexual makeup is clear in his life as well as his works. But whether or not anything about Lewis's own sexual behavior can be proved, The Monk is one of the great works in the gay and lesbian literary tradition. It is the story of frustrated desire expressed, at first anyway, as male-male love. Ambrosio, the hero of the novel, is a handsome monk above reproach in his private affairs. Then suddenly he finds himself involved with the emotions of a young (male) novice, whom he befriends and who becomes more and more tormenting to his solace.
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