Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.76 AVERAGE
3.76 AVERAGE
Basically just story after story of men tricking women into having sex with them
Juicy bits of carnality simmering in a well-seasoned, tasty broth, but at the end of the day, it's just a stew. And I'm not convinced that Boccaccio intended it to be anything more than that. Almost all these stories are delicately crafted, despite the crass subject material, but I was expecting something more substantial for what is considered Western Canon caliber literature. The first story and the last might be all you really need to read.
I was motivated to read this in order to understand more about the history of prose fiction and English literature. Chaucer and Shakespeare both based stories on various of these tales. A little research seems to indicate that neither of them actually read the whole 100 stories, which was probably a good move on their part as they do get a bit repetitious.
I have, however, now read the entire collection of linked short stories. The linking device is the tale of a group of 10 young people from Florence who have quarantined themselves outside the city to escape the plague. This was interesting when I started reading in light only of the fact that I have been researching the Spanish Flu and read Defoe’s Journal of the Plague Year last year. By the time I finished reading it, we had been in Covid Lockdown for 3 months, so it felt rather more pertinent.
The stories of the Decameron are a mixed bunch, in terms of length, importance, seriousness etc, but also in terms of the moral lessons they advocate. To some extent, these are a result of the time in which they were written. However, some of the prejudices I was expecting to see were not there, while other failures I had not expected were, and on some subjects the tales contradict each other.
They are more multicultural and accepting of other faiths than I expected. I was surprised to come across a gay character, who was not criticised for his sexuality, only for failing to keep his wife sexually satisfied. Their solution seemed particularly modern. At times, Boccaccio seemed to truly understand people in a timeless way, at others he had characters behave selfishly without acknowledging the effect of this on others (eg praising a man for generosity after he had let someone’s family think she was dead for three months).
The attitudes which were consistently of his time and unacceptable in ours, were those to violence and class. Violence is casual and acceptable. It is also often quite extreme. Working people are constantly viewed as dispensable and unimportant, displays of wealth as honourable and virtue, breeding and income as inseparable. This was then the attitude, hence the two meanings of the word ‘noble’. It grates reading it now.
The most inconsistent of his attitudes are those towards woman. Boccaccio’s authorial interruptions make it clear that he is writing for an audience of leisured women. Seven of his story-tellers are women. Women are praised for being clever, frequently told they deserve sexual satisfaction and encouraged to get the better of their husbands. On the other hand, there is not just acceptance that husbands beat their wives, those who do not beat them enough are encouraged to do so more. Husbands own their wives and daughters, and can pass them on to whoever they like. A lot of the stories involve humour at women (& some men) being tricked into having sex. The final story is that of Patient Griselda, which Chaucer also used, in which a husband has a woman believe, among other things, that he has murdered their children. She is praised for accepting this without complaint.
The only saving grace of some of these anomalies is that after each story we are told that the 10 gentlefolk sharing them discuss their contents afterwards, seldom all agreeing that any character behaved well, or deserved what they got.
I am glad that I have now read this collection which I have heard referred to so many times in my life. Some of the stories were entertaining, some even very worthwhile. More than half of them, though, weren’t really. Boccaccio says as much in his afterword, though, so that’s fair enough.
I have, however, now read the entire collection of linked short stories. The linking device is the tale of a group of 10 young people from Florence who have quarantined themselves outside the city to escape the plague. This was interesting when I started reading in light only of the fact that I have been researching the Spanish Flu and read Defoe’s Journal of the Plague Year last year. By the time I finished reading it, we had been in Covid Lockdown for 3 months, so it felt rather more pertinent.
The stories of the Decameron are a mixed bunch, in terms of length, importance, seriousness etc, but also in terms of the moral lessons they advocate. To some extent, these are a result of the time in which they were written. However, some of the prejudices I was expecting to see were not there, while other failures I had not expected were, and on some subjects the tales contradict each other.
They are more multicultural and accepting of other faiths than I expected. I was surprised to come across a gay character, who was not criticised for his sexuality, only for failing to keep his wife sexually satisfied. Their solution seemed particularly modern. At times, Boccaccio seemed to truly understand people in a timeless way, at others he had characters behave selfishly without acknowledging the effect of this on others (eg praising a man for generosity after he had let someone’s family think she was dead for three months).
The attitudes which were consistently of his time and unacceptable in ours, were those to violence and class. Violence is casual and acceptable. It is also often quite extreme. Working people are constantly viewed as dispensable and unimportant, displays of wealth as honourable and virtue, breeding and income as inseparable. This was then the attitude, hence the two meanings of the word ‘noble’. It grates reading it now.
The most inconsistent of his attitudes are those towards woman. Boccaccio’s authorial interruptions make it clear that he is writing for an audience of leisured women. Seven of his story-tellers are women. Women are praised for being clever, frequently told they deserve sexual satisfaction and encouraged to get the better of their husbands. On the other hand, there is not just acceptance that husbands beat their wives, those who do not beat them enough are encouraged to do so more. Husbands own their wives and daughters, and can pass them on to whoever they like. A lot of the stories involve humour at women (& some men) being tricked into having sex. The final story is that of Patient Griselda, which Chaucer also used, in which a husband has a woman believe, among other things, that he has murdered their children. She is praised for accepting this without complaint.
The only saving grace of some of these anomalies is that after each story we are told that the 10 gentlefolk sharing them discuss their contents afterwards, seldom all agreeing that any character behaved well, or deserved what they got.
I am glad that I have now read this collection which I have heard referred to so many times in my life. Some of the stories were entertaining, some even very worthwhile. More than half of them, though, weren’t really. Boccaccio says as much in his afterword, though, so that’s fair enough.
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Niet helemaal uitgelezen. Moest voor boekenclub 2 dagen, en die vond ik verrassend mooi, leuk en grappig. Maar op een gegeven moment beginnen de verhalen een beetje op elkaar te lijken, en het taal gebruik toch vermoeiend te worden om te lezen. Misschien lees ik het ooit nog uit..
Like most collections of short stories, very hard to rate as a whole. Definitely some enjoyment in there. There is kind of an over arching story in the background that I didn't find at all engaging but it didn't interfere with enjoyment too much.
A solid read.
A solid read.
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Laying on the floor staring into the void at the realization that these rich, selfish nobles had retreated entirely their plague bubble - which they could do because they were supported by servants - and then just went back to Florence after they had all had a chance to lead storytelling hour because they were tired of lockdown, with no mention of the plague.
emotional
funny
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes