Bring on the tough stuff - there’s not just one right answer.
- How does the frame narrative affect our understanding of the purpose of the storytelling game?
- What's the function of the songs that are sung at the end of each storytelling day?
- Why are so many of the stories about sex?
- Why don't the characters in the story feel guilty about their sexual escapades?
- Who are the rule-breakers in The Decameron? How do they affect the community of storytellers?
- Are the stories necessarily reflective of their storytellers' "inner lives"? If so, how do we interpret the more problematic or gruesome stories that are told?
- Boccaccio states that he's written this work to entertain women. Do you think that's really his target audience?
- Is it safe to say that this book could be classified as "chick lit?" Would Boccaccio think so?
- How did Boccaccio get away with all his scathing criticism and ridicule of the Catholic Church? Seriously, wouldn't describing an erection as "the resurrection of the flesh" get you excommunicated at least?