Giovanni Boccaccio: The Black Plague In Florence, Italy

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Giovanni Boccaccio was an Italian writer and humanist. He lived in Florence in the 14th century and left behind one of the world’s greatest works of literature, a collection of novellas called The Decameron. Besides having an important role in forming a standard Italian language, that book is also important in human history as it very precisely describes the calamity and the consequences of the Black Plague in Florence, Italy. It is also very helpful for me as a history student because it eases the understanding of the effects the Black Plague had on a society at that time. To begin with the fact that Boccaccio explains that despite all of the precautions, such as the cleansing of the city and refusing of entrance to all sick people, the Bubonic Plague came from the East and hit Florence in 1348. It continued to spread throughout the Europe, devastating all towns and villages. Not only does Boccaccio give us the origin of the Plague and the exact time of its appearance in Europe, but he also describes symptoms, transmission and people’s reactions to it in details. The symptoms of the Plague in Europe differed from those in the East. A manifest sign of inevitable death in the East was a blood from a nose, while in Florence, at first, there were bigger or smaller tumors in the groin or the armpits, which would then spread indifferently all over the infected person’s body. Later, black spots would appear on different parts of the …show more content…

As far as I am concerned, this piece should be used as a historical reference. It probably can’t be used for the precise numbers and facts, but it is definitely very useful for recreating the environment, society and worldviews of that era. Therefore, I believe that The Decameron is essential for fully understanding of the Black Death, its effects and

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