Boccaccio and Exemplary Literature

This is the first monograph to provide a comprehensive interpretation of the Decameron''s response to classical and medieval didactic traditions. Olivia Holmes unearths the rich variety of Boccaccio''s sources, ranging across Aesopic fables, narrative collections of Islamicate origin, sermon-stories and saints'' lives, and compilations of historical anecdotes. Examining the Decameron''s sceptical ...