Monday, February 20, 2012

I'm including in our assignment a link to the Boccaccio website, which gives us an intensive look not only at the man and his literary accomplishments, but at the 1348 plague that struck with such deadly force in Florence. Browse through this website and familiarize yourself with its contents; we will look at it in class. In particular, read The Brigata: Pleasure and Plague; Dante and Boccaccio, Fortuna, and The Art of Courtly Love. Do some reading in the sections under the heading "The Plague" as well.

Homework:

• First, in the Life of Dante, note how Boccaccio elevates Dante to splendid heights. What is the basis for his praise of Dante?
• How does Boccaccio compare the standards of behavior of his own contemporaries with those of Italy's glorious past?
• What are the rhetorical features of Boccaccio's prose? Come in with passages you've specially identified as showing his powers of persuasion in action.
• In the prelude to the Decameron, look at the effects of the plague on social life, religious faith, family life, and rituals of order. What seems to strike Boccaccio as particularly noteworthy in his record of the breakdown during that time?

Laurel Carrington carringt@stolaf.edu
Most recent update: January 19, 2012

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