Rustico and Alibech by Giovanni Boccaccio free essay sample

Rustico and Alibech by Giovanni Boccaccio Giovanni Boccaccio The exact details of his birth are uncertain. A number of sources state that he was born in  Paris, but others denounce this as romanticism by the earliest biographers. In this case his birthplace was possibly in  Tuscany, perhaps in  Certaldo, the town of his father. He was the son of a  Florentine  merchant and an unknown woman, and almost certainly born illegitimate. Boccaccio grew up in Florence. His father was working for the  Compagnia dei Bardi  and in the 1320s married Margherita dei Mardoli, of an illustrious family. It is believed Boccaccio was tutored by Giovanni Mazzuoli and received from him an early introduction to the works of  Dante. In 1326 Boccaccio moved to  Naples  with the family when his father was appointed to head the Neapolitan branch of his bank. Boccaccio was apprenticed to the bank, but it was a trade for which he had no affinity. We will write a custom essay sample on Rustico and Alibech by Giovanni Boccaccio or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page He eventually persuaded his father to let him study law at the  Studium  in the city. For the next six years Boccaccio studied  canon law there. From there he pursued his interest in scientific and literary studies. His father introduced him to the Neapolitan nobility and the French-influenced court of  Robert the Wise  in the 1330s. At this time he fell in love with a married daughter of King Robert of Naples (known as  Robert the Wise) and she is immortalized as the character  Fiammetta  in many of Boccaccios prose romances, particularly  Il Filocolo  (1338). Boccaccio never married, but had three children. Mario and Giulio were born in the 1330s. In the 1340s, Violente was born in Ravenna, where Boccaccio was a guest of  Ostasio I da Polenta  from about 1345 through 1346. The Italian writer Giovanni Boccaccio lived through the plague as it ravaged the city of Florence in 1348. The experience inspired him to write The Decameron, a story of seven men and three women who escape the disease by fleeing to a villa outside the city. In his introduction to the fictional portion of his book, Boccaccio gives a graphic description of the effects of the epidemic on his city. Tenth tale (III, 10) Alibech turns hermit, and is taught by Rustico, a monk, how the Devil is put in hell. She is afterwards conveyed thence, and becomes the wife of Neerbale. Dioneo narrates what is by far the most obscene and bawdy tale in the  Decameron. Alibech, a naive young woman, wanders into the dessert in an attempt to become closer to God. She happens upon the monk Rustico, and he deflowers her under the pretence of teaching her how to better please God. Alibech becomes more enthusiastic about  putting the Devil back into Hell than Rustico, almost to the point of his ruin. Meanwhile, her family and family home are incinerated, leaving her the only heir. Neerbale kidnaps her, much to Rusticos relief and Alibechs displeasure, and Alibech is made to marry Neerbale. The night before the wedding, she is questioned by other women as to how Alibech served God in the forest, and upon explaining to her ladies how the Devil is put back into Hell, is informed that Neerbale will surely know how to help her serve God once more. Insight and Message Being a person like Alibech who is a simple minded woman and wants to serve God, Rustico a person who is a deceitful man take advantage to Alibech. Or is simpler way, this is like a person who is taking advantage to the person who are weak and has lack of knowledge and ideas in everything.