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The Decameron (c.1351) was written in the wake of the Black Death, a shattering epidemic which had shaken Florence's confident entrepreneurial society to its core. In a country villa outside the city, ten young noble men and women who have escaped the plague decide to tell each other stories. Boccaccio's skill as a dramatist is masterfully displayed in this virtuoso performance of one hundred tales, vivid portraits of people from all stations in life, with plots which revel in a bewildering variety of human reactions. Themes are playfully restated from one story to another within an elegant and refined framework. One of Chaucer's most fruitful sources for the Canterbury Tales, Boccaccio's work artfully combines the essential ingredients of narrative: fate and desire, crises and quick-thinking. This new translation by Guido Waldman captures the exuberance and variety and tone of Boccaccio's masterpiece.
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It is inherently human to show pity to those who are afflicted; it is a quality that becomes any person, but most particularly is it required of those who have stood in need of consolation and have obtained it from others; now if ever there was a man who craved pity or valued it or rejoiced in it, that man was I. Read the first page Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
It is inherently human to show pity to those who are afflicted; it is a quality that becomes any person, but most particularly is it required of those who have stood in need of consolation and have obtained it from others; now if ever there was a man who craved pity or valued it or rejoiced in it, that man was I. Read the first page Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
16 of 21 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Boccaccio's 'Decameron' is a rich and diverse collection of stories and anecdotes. They often amount to little nuggets of medieval smut which can be highly amusing in themselves. There's also much to be gleaned about everyday life among the rich and the poor in medieval Tuscany; a shaft of light is thrown on ordinary fourteenth century problems such as the dangers of travelling between cities. Between stories, Boccaccio inserts details about the story-tellers, and their attempts to flee the plague in Florence, all written in elegant humanist prose. In short, six hundred pages and a hundred stories represent no hardship for the reader. The translation of the text itself is superb and means the language affords no obstacle to enjoyment. In stark contrast, however, to the medieval wit and expertise is the shoddy modern editing which has gone into the edition. The notes at the end of the volume are banal and fail to satisfy the reader's interest in the broader historical picture. It really does seem like the editor sat down one weekend and wrote all the notes, without any further referencing.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
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6 reviews
20 of 20 people found the following review helpful
The art of storytelling...
11 Aug 2004
Format:Paperback
'The Decameron' is a series of 100 stories, ten stories told each night by ten different people who had left the city for a country sojourn to escape a time of plague. Giovanni Boccaccio, an Italian author known as part of the founding trinity of Italian literature (the others are Dante and Petrarca), was born in 1313, and produced most of his literary works by his mid-30s. The ten characters in 'The Decameron' were all young people, much like Boccaccio, and the passions, interests and issues of his own age is illustrated among these folk -- Boccaccio's possibly-fictitious love, Fiammetta, is similarly one of the characters here.
This edition by Norton does not include all 100 stories, but rather 21 selected stories, many of the more popular ones, selected by professors Mark Musa and Peter Bondanella (professors at my university when I was there 20 years ago), who are also known for their editing and translation of works by Dante and Machiavelli. There are selections from each 'day' (set of 10 stories), as well as a few of the extra texts, such as a prologue, introduction, and overall conclusion by Boccaccio. These are edited to fit together, as Boccaccio's tales often would wind from one story to the next, making a selection of disconnected stories difficult in transition without editing.
There are also two different kinds of critical analytical materials included in this Norton Critical Edition. The first includes personal correspondence samples, particularly between Boccaccio and Petrarca; these date even after the writing of 'The Decameron', showing the interest and reactions. These materials include other contemporary and closely-following generations' reactions and influences from 'The Decameron'.
The second part of the critical materials includes more modern scholarship and analysis. These deal with history, philology, philosophy, and other literary criticism topics (structuralism, formalism, rhetoric, etc.). It also includes a study of a film interpretation of 'The Decameron', filmed by Pier Paolo Pasolini.
While purists will probably be disappointed with the abridgement of the text, the essays deal with the whole of the work of 'The Decameron'. Hopefully those who read the stories here will be motivated to continue their reading with a full-copy edition of 'The Decameron'. The translations are interesting and lively, and the stories continue to make connections with audiences today.
This edition by Norton does not include all 100 stories, but rather 21 selected stories, many of the more popular ones, selected by professors Mark Musa and Peter Bondanella (professors at my university when I was there 20 years ago), who are also known for their editing and translation of works by Dante and Machiavelli. There are selections from each 'day' (set of 10 stories), as well as a few of the extra texts, such as a prologue, introduction, and overall conclusion by Boccaccio. These are edited to fit together, as Boccaccio's tales often would wind from one story to the next, making a selection of disconnected stories difficult in transition without editing.
There are also two different kinds of critical analytical materials included in this Norton Critical Edition. The first includes personal correspondence samples, particularly between Boccaccio and Petrarca; these date even after the writing of 'The Decameron', showing the interest and reactions. These materials include other contemporary and closely-following generations' reactions and influences from 'The Decameron'.
The second part of the critical materials includes more modern scholarship and analysis. These deal with history, philology, philosophy, and other literary criticism topics (structuralism, formalism, rhetoric, etc.). It also includes a study of a film interpretation of 'The Decameron', filmed by Pier Paolo Pasolini.
While purists will probably be disappointed with the abridgement of the text, the essays deal with the whole of the work of 'The Decameron'. Hopefully those who read the stories here will be motivated to continue their reading with a full-copy edition of 'The Decameron'. The translations are interesting and lively, and the stories continue to make connections with audiences today.
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
The Edition to Get
7 Jan 2003
Format:Paperback
This edition of the Decameron is accurate, uncensored and filled with fascinating footnotes. After having read The Canterbury Tales, I was looking for its companion piece and this is the definitive edition. This gives a real feel for medieval life and is humorous, bawdy and an entertaining read as well.
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Left me wanting more ...
2 Jan 2007
Format:Paperback
Boccaccio's _Decameron_ is a collection of 100 tales: 10 stories told by 10 refugees from the Black Death. This collection only includes 21 of them, which was a disappointment - I had hoped to read all 100. (My mistake for not paying closer attention.) With that said, the selections included were fantastic and certainly whetted my appetite for more.
The literary criticism of the stories was of only passing interest, but did provide some depth to my understanding of the stories, the author and the times.
For those seeking a taste of the Decameron, I highly recommend it. If, like me you were looking for the entire collection, look elsewhere. Regardless, a very worthwhile read.
The literary criticism of the stories was of only passing interest, but did provide some depth to my understanding of the stories, the author and the times.
For those seeking a taste of the Decameron, I highly recommend it. If, like me you were looking for the entire collection, look elsewhere. Regardless, a very worthwhile read.
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