Decameron and Canterbury Tales

HISTORY

The Canterbury Tales are composed of 120 novellas, which tell the story of 30 pilgrims, including Joeffry
Coucher, narrator of the tales, who must reach the tomb of Thomas Becket at Canterbury; in addition,
each pilgrim must tell 2 stories on the outward journey and two on the return; This is very similar in
Boccaccio's Decameron (composed of 100 novellas), which tells the story of 7 maidens and 3 young men
who have escaped from the plague epidemic in Florence, going to a place where each of them will tell a
story day by day.

PERSONAGES

Joeffry Coucher's pilgrims represent a cross-section of the society of the time, that is, representatives
of : feudal society; the clergy; the emerging middle class; while Boccaccio's boys/girls do not have
defined characters; one can only say that their names recall Boccaccio's earlier works.

THEMES

The theme of the Decameron is based on divine and earthly love, and on man's ability to deal with
obstacles. Instead, in the Canterbury tales the prevailing theme is the satire of society divided into three
parts: Nobility, Church, Peasants. In addition we have the corruption of the clergy, the journey and the
position of women.