The monk’s tale

The Monk’s Tale

Bethany Hansen

Hannah Waters

O2

The Monk decided to tell his story in the form of several tragedies where Fortune holds the key and prosperous men have disastrous ends.

Lucifer was the greatest angel in heaven, but when he thought himself too great, he was cast out of heaven. He then became Satan, the leader of Hell.

Adam was given a beautiful garden by God. Unfortunately, he failed to follow the guidelines set by God and was cast out of the garden and forced to live a life of hard labor.

Sampson was blessed by God with the power of strength. His hair was what gave him such strength, and the angels told him to never cut it or else he would lose his strength. Sampson conquered many men in his lifetime. His wife, Delilah, was eager to know his secret.

She convinced him to tell her the source of his strength and he unwittingly told her. When Sampson was asleep, Delilah cut his hair then left him for another man. Without his strength, Sampson was blinded and imprisoned. Sampson knocked down two pillars in a feat of unexpected strength, and ended up killing all the prisoners, including himself.

Hercules was known as the bravest and the strongest of all men. He slaughtered many monsters and freed the world of their cruelty. Hercules was very fond of a girl named Deianira. She sent him a shirt, but it was poisoned with Nessus, which caused his skin to blacken and rot. Not wanting to die from poison, Hercules laid on hot brands killing himself.

Nebuchadnezzar was the loved King of Babylon. He constructed a gold statue and all his subjects were to bow to it in worship. If they refused, they were thrown into a furnace to die. Yet when Daniel, a citizen of Babylon, refused, the King began to act like a savage animal with no humanity. Some time later, God gave him his humanity back. King Nebuchadnezzar realized his foolishness and worshiped God.

Belshazzar was the son of Nebuchadnezzar and took the throne of Babylon after his father. Belshazzar worshipped many false idols. He held a feast for one thousand noblemen, but during it, he saw a bodiless hand writing on the wall.

The hand wrote “Mene Mene Tekel”. Daniel, still a citizen of Babylon was summoned. He warned Belshazzar not to worship false idols and not to follow in his father’s footsteps. Daniel also warned the Babylon would be split between the Persians and the Medes.

Zenobia was the queen of Palmyra. She was an amazing huntress and warrior, but she refused the duties of women, including marriage. Later on, she was forced to marry a prince named Odenathus. Zenobia commanded him to sleep with her only for the purpose of conceiving a child, and no more.

Together they did have children and lived, conquering other countries. When Odenathus died, the Romans captured Zenobia. She was chained and dragged to the streets to show Zenobia’s shame.

Pedro was a noble king of Spain until his brother defeated him and banned him from the country. Then, Pedro’s brother led him to his tent, where he killed Pedro.

Peter was the king of Cyprus. He was a cruel leader to his people and was murdered in his bed.

Bernabo of Lombardy was a powerful man who imprisoned his innocent nephew. Bernabo’s ending is not told, for it is not certain how he lived the rest of his life.

Ugolino was the count of Pisa until a rebellion was led against him by Ruggieri. Ugolino was imprisoned in a tower with his three sons, left to starve to death. When his youngest son died, the other two offered to let their father eat them when they died. Ugolino refused and he and the two sons died of starvation.

Nero was a cruel dictator and killed many people including his mother, brother, and sister. He even killed his teacher, Seneca, for saying an emperor should be kind, not vicious. Fortune grew tired of his bloodthirsty actions and sent a mob of people to kill him. Nero fled the country and killed himself.

Holofernes was a powerful, but pompous ruler. He forced his subjects to worship Nebuchadnezzar and no one dared refuse his command. One night at a gathering, Holofernes was very drunk. A woman named Judith was there with him, and chopped off his head.

Antiochus Epiphanes was a powerful man who hunted the Jews. God was angry that Antiochus would harm his own people, so God caused him to rot from the inside. Maggots began to infest his body. His stench became so offensive, no one could stand to be near him.

Alexander the Great ruled and conquered many people and was known for his courageousness. He ruled for twelve years, until he was poisoned by his heir.

Julius Caesar was the powerful leader of Rome until he was brutally murdered by Brutus and Cassius.

Croesus was the king of Lydia, who was sentenced to burn to death, until a great rain put out the fire. Croesus thought he was saved, but his daughter, Phoebus, warned him he would hang at the gallows instead, which he did.

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