Movie: Monk Dawson

 

Here’s another Catholic school and another rather unusual beating (is there a connection between the two?)

Monk Dawson (unsurprisingly) tells the story of a Monk. Edward Dawson is sent by his widowed mother to be educated at Kirkham, an English Catholic boarding school run by Benedictine monks. The film released in 1998 is based on a novel by Piers Paul Read (Secker and Warburg, 1969) and the bit that interests us takes place at the school. Dawson, played by Daniel Brocklebank, is a senior boy who realises he has ‘feelings’ for a younger pupil. He confides in his housemaster, a priest, who concludes that it must be nipped in the bud. And the way to do that is with six strokes of the cane which he administers with some strength and seemingly a little satisfaction.

As is often the way with such things, the film is not a true representation of the book.

Here the scene as written:

 

After prayers that evening, Dawson asked Father Tim if he could see him and the house-master told him to come down to his study when he was ready for bed. When Dawson came in wearing pyjamas and dressing-gown, Father Tim was smoking his pipe. Dawson sat down in the chair next to the desk at which the priest was sitting. The lights were out in the dormitories.

...

None the less, the tone with which he spoke after the silence was tight and aggressive. ‘Are you telling me that you have become fond of a boy in the fourth form?’

‘Yes, sir, I …’

‘A younger boy?’

‘A boy in the fourth, yes, sir.’

‘Who?’

‘Who?’

‘Yes. What’s his name?’

‘It’s Furness, sir.’

‘Ah.’

Silence. Dawson had forgotten what he had come to ask or discuss. He had noticed the change of tone in Father Timothy’s voice.

‘Eddie … what do you mean when you say you have become fond of Furness?’

‘Well, I seem to like him.’

‘And does he like you?’

‘I don’t know, sir. There’s not much way of telling, since I’m a dormitory monitor, you see …’

Father Timothy leant back in his chair. He sighed and straightened his habit — a little worn, a little greasy. Dawson looked down at his own hands. ‘Eddie,’ said Father Timothy, ‘there are some things you may not quite understand, but this … friendship for Furness … it is not, it cannot be a good thing. Do you understand?’

‘Yes, sir.’

‘Do you understand why it is wrong?’

‘Not really. I thought it might be, though.’

‘Why?’

‘I don’t know.’

‘Can you imagine why it might be wrong? An older boy and a younger boy?’

‘No, sir. I thought … I thought …’

‘What?’

‘I thought that Saint John was the youngest of the disciples, yet he was the one whom Jesus loved the most.’

‘Yes, Eddie, that’s true: but it’s not the same in a boarding school like this.’

‘How would you … I mean, what form would you like your fondness for Furness to take?’

‘I don’t know, sir. That’s one of the things I wanted to ask you. You see, being a dormitory monitor, it’s hard to be natural. I should like to be kind to him, sir, not …’

‘Not what?’

‘Not … a dormitory monitor.’

‘Would you like to touch him?’

‘What?’

‘Would you like to touch him? To touch his body?’

‘I don’t know, sir, I …’

‘You see, I have to explain this to you. When an older boy becomes fond of a younger one, his wish, even if he doesn’t know it, is to misuse the other boy’s body.’

‘Oh no, sir, I …’

‘Of course, you wouldn’t realize that. They often don’t realize it until it’s too late. What starts as a gesture of affection, Eddie, can quickly become the groping of lust. You’ll find yourself handling his penis. Do you abuse your own?’

‘No, sir.’

‘Good. I’m glad about that Eddie, because it’s a hard habit to break. And I’m glad you came to me with your problem and I don’t want you to misunderstand what I’m about to suggest. I think a mild beating would be in order here. It’s not meant as a punishment, because I’m satisfied that you’ve done nothing wrong, but as a reminder to the body that our mind can reply to the feelings it sneaks up on us — and this feeling is from the body, Eddie, you must accept that. A few strokes, and the body will be taught its lesson. Now remember: this is not a punishment, and we needn’t go ahead with it if you don’t agree to it. But my advice, with the benefit of my long experience, is that it would be the best thing if you really want to resist temptation and avoid sin.’

‘Yes, sir … I … if you think …’

Edward Dawson who, above all of us, hated being beaten — not because of the pain but because of the indignity — was too confused to disagree with his house-master’s suggestion. He stood up and bent over the arm of the chair as instructed by the priest, his testicles pressing against the cool leather. He was given six strokes of a specially manufactured ferula which left blue and pink marks on his buttocks for weeks afterward — and though his soul may have been saved that evening, Furness was no better off. Later that year, after a gala performance as a candle-bearer at the high altar of the abbey church, he was abducted and debauched by three sixth-formers from another house.

 

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