"The Decameron"

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses Giovanni Boccaccio's masterpiece, "The Decameron", and describes it as one of the greatest literary works that follows the tradition of the frame narrative. The paper describes the creative farces which are included in each narrative and how these give a highly aesthetic value to each story. The paper discusses some of the lessons in witticism and the art of ingenuity that can be taken from the stories.

From the Paper:

"Matteo Bandello, another important writer who was influenced by Boccaccio and who in his turn influenced other major writers, like Shakespeare, also wrote a collection of stories that are based on the same main principle of the art of deceiving or playing farces. His version of Romeo and Juliet can be seen as starting from the idea of deceiving or farce, although in this case the deceiving has tragic consequences. Many of the ideas in Boccaccio were thus transmitted to great works like those of Shakespeare, especially in his comedies."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Auerbach, Erich. "Frate Alberto." In Critical Perspectives on the "Decameron," pp. 69-81. London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1976.
• Boccaccio, Giovanni. Il Decamerone. http://www.stg.brown.edu/projects/decameron/itDecShowText.php?myID=nov0303&expand=day03
• De Sanctis, Francesco. "Boccaccio's Human Comedy." In Critical Perspectives on the "Decameron," pp. 26-37. London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1976.
• Moravia, Alberto. "Boccaccio." In Man as an End: A Defense of Humanism: Literary, Social, and Political Essays, translated by Bernard Wall, pp. 143-55. New York: Farrar Straus & Giroux, 1965.
• Shklovskij, Victor. "Some Reflections on the Decameron." In Critical Perspectives on the "Decameron,". London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1976, p. 61-69

More papers on "The Decameron":

• Analytical Essay # 62017 : "The Decameron"
• Essay # 73878 : "The Decameron" and The "Inferno"
• Book Review # 49914 : "Giovanni Boccaccio's "The Decameron"

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