View notes lecture 22 1001 nights and the decameron from hum 101 at bogazici university. An early example of the frame story is the book of one thousand and one nights, in which the character scheherazade narrates a set of fairy tales to the sultan. The main story combines bits of giovanni boccaccios own life maybe and maybe not with three of his most fabulous stories of love. One thousand and one nights is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel. At their leisure in this isolated and bucolic setting, they spend ten days telling each other storiestales of romance, tragedy, comedy, and farce. This is an excerpt from the decameron by giovanni boccaccio, in which a series of ten tales are told each day for ten days. World literature 1001 nights shakespeare flashcards. The decameron, 1001 nights, and the canterbury tales one. There are many dialogues and monologs, turkish loanwords and archaism. There undeniably is framing in 1001 nights and il decameron, but it is not the mere. Like the canterbury tales and 1001 nights, its a compendium of tales and uses a frame narrative. Thousand and one nights is a book about feminine power by means of wit, resilience, and love of justice, creativity, grace and passion.
The arabian nights is a collection of stories from all over the eastern world. Recommended reading for anyone interested in literature and medieval history. Demon is going to kill him, asks for 1 year to say goodbye and get his affairs in order. There are so many manuscripts to choose from, none definitive, representing a fantastical melange of tales preserved, embroidered, lost and reinvented by countless oral storytellers, arabic, persian.
Considering the fact that parents in the western world are reluctant to place the books with the tales on the front rows of their library shelves mainly because of their. The question and answer section for the arabian nights. The decameron book hennepin county library bibliocommons. Decameron ebook king county library system bibliocommons. In his witty essay on the translators of the 1001 nights, borges celebrates a hostile dynasty, each scion striving to annihilate his predecessor. It includes information on what life is like and how to live it in a world full of tyrannical as well as good rulers, magicians and witches, good and bad jinnis or demons, plentiful sex, lots of violence and. Decameron and arabian nights the arabian nights and arab culture arabian nights which known as alf layla wa laylah have a huge impact and relation to arab culture. Decameron nights 1953 was based on three of the tales and starred louis jourdan as boccaccio. S some of these date back to earlier persian, indian and arabic literature, while others were original to the one thousand and one nights. Giovanni boccaccio 75 giovanni boccaccios the decameron is a collection of novellas or short novels written during the 14th century.
The fourteenthcentury syrian manuscript of the 1001 nights. I thought this was a child stories book, like, hai im a princess and this is where i slept for 1001 nights lol, but this was a good story with a lot of detail, i was trying to play this book for my little sister and she fell asleep for the first minute lol, she didnt understand anything lol, but it was a great story. Pdf decameron and 1001 nights comparison sayen ozkil. The decameron subtitled prince galehaut and sometimes nicknamed lumana commedia the human comedy, is a collection of novellas by the 14thcentury italian author giovanni boccaccio 75. The title can be literally translated as ten day, which. John paynes translation of the decameron was originally published in a private printing for the villon society, london, 1886. The 2007 film virgin territory is a romantic comedy based on the framing story of the decameron.
Arabian nights are a collection of old stories include preislamic culture, historical tales, love, crimes, poetries, music and literature. Burton was a 19th century renaissance man, noted for his achievements as an explorer, translator, writer, soldier, orientalist, ethnologist, linguist, poet. Critics of the 1001 nights and decameron often study the texts through narratological methods, that is, the study of the form and structure of narrative. Its florence, italy, 48, and the black death has ravaged the city. According to the oxford english dictionary a frame story is a story which serves as a framework within which a number of other stories are told, a concept which shahrazad uses to its fullest.
The book s title the decameron combines the two greek words deka meaning ten and hemera meaning day. It stars joan fontaine and, as boccaccio, louis jourdan. The decameron is a collection of novellas by the 14thcentury italian author giovanni boccaccio 75. Its interesting to read now, as its set during a plague. As a child, he was fascinated by the adventures recounted in the book, and he attributes some of his creations to his love of the 1001 nights. Tales from the thousand and one nights essay 1730 words. The stories are told in a country villa outside the city of florence by ten young noble men and women who are seeking to escape the ravages of the plague. There are 100 tales contained in the book which is presented together. There are many stories written in verse and characterized like art. The times london the decameron, by giovanni boccaccio 75, made a great impression on me. As i understand it, this excerpt chooses one tale for each of the ten days. In doing so, they identify many important devices and aspects of the text, such as elements of plot, narrative voices, levels of embedding, etc. Literary themes and techniques from 1001 nights life. Ten young florentinesseven women and three menescape the plagueinfested city and retreat to the countryside around fiesole.
Each story of the book reflects the overall changing society of the renaissance. Comparing the decameron to the arbian nights, how important. Giovanni boccaccios the decameron and the roles of men. It has boccaccio following fiametta to a country villa where she and five other womenthe contessa, pampinea and three villa girls are hiding following the rape of. His life is ransomed back by three strangers who trade 1 story each for of his life. Giovanni boccaccios the decameron is a collection of novellas or short novels written during the 14th century. The work is regarded as a masterpiece of classical italian prose. Its tales of aladdin, ali baba, and sindbad the sailor have almost become part of western folklore, though these were added to the collection only in the 18th century in european adaptations. The decameron by giovanni boccaccio free at loyal books.
To pass the evenings, each member of the party tells a story each night. While romantic in tone and form, it breaks from medieval sensibility in its insistence on the human ability to overcome, even exploit. Every tale is a cliffhanger and you keep wanting to read just one more to see how it turns out. The decameron was written by giovanni boccaccio, an italian writer who lived from 75. The project gutenberg ebook of the decameron of giovanni. Lecture 22 1001 nights and the decameron 1001 nights and. The arabian nights is hugely various, like the lands it came from, and it is jampacked with spiritual as well as earthly values. Boccaccio wrote the book between 48 and 52, when the values of the middle ages valor. Aug 09, 2010 i thought this was a child stories book, like, hai im a princess and this is where i slept for 1001 nights lol, but this was a good story with a lot of detail, i was trying to play this book for my little sister and she fell asleep for the first minute lol, she didnt understand anything lol, but it was a great story. Unabridged and unexpurgated translations were made, first by john payne, under the title the book of the thousand nights and one night 1882, nine volumes, and then by sir richard francis burton, entitled the book of the thousand nights and a night 1885, ten volumes the latter was, according to some assessments, partially based on the. The transition from story to story is a matter of civilized, turntaking within the brigata. The influence of the nights on modern horror fiction is certainly discernible in the work of h. A good visual of this literary device can be found in the above pun.
Boccaccios skill as adramatist is masterfully displayed in these vivid portraits of. The decameron, the canterbury tales, arabian nights. One thousand and one nights is an arab book of stories that contains legends, stories, anecdotes and others. Some suggest one thousand and one nights or the ephesian tale may. The decamerons ending gives its stories more independent social significance than the stories of the 1001 nights. The arabian nights is a collection of tales from the islamic golden age, compiled by various authors over many hundreds of years though each collection features different stories, they are all centered around the frame story of the sultan shahrayar and his wife, scheherazade. Comparison of the decameron the arabian nights and the. These stories were derived from the west and south asia where a lot of translators. The 1001 nights, or more literally translated from the arabic, a thousand nights and one night, is plausibly interpreted to mean an innumerably large number of nights. In 1001 nights, shahrazad tells the king stories to forestall. This halcyon classics ebook of the night of a thousand nights and a night commonly referred to as the arabian nights is the complete, unabridged translation by sir richard f. The one thousand and one nights and various tales within it make use of many innovative literary techniques, which the storytellers of the tales rely on for increased drama, suspense, or other emotions.
This article contains summaries and commentaries of the 100 stories within giovanni. Trilogy of life the decameron, the canterbury tales, arabian nights the. The 1001 arabian nights is probably the most famous middle. As with most societies until relatively recently in history, women were not allowed to have a significant role in society, other than that of a wife and mother.
Neifile tells both the second story of the book and the second anti catholic story. The decameron is a collection of 100 novellas by italian author giovanni boccaccio, probably begun in 50 and finished in 53. The american edition from which this etext was prepared is undated. Nov 14, 2008 the arabian nights does something similar, but there is far less of the supernatural in boccaccio. The arabian nights and arab culture arabian nights which known as alf layla wa laylah have a huge impact and relation to arab culture. The decameron book chicago public library bibliocommons. The book is structured as a frame story containing 100 tales told by a group of. Mcwilliams finest work, his translation of boccaccios decameron remains one of the most successful and lauded books in the series. The thousand nights and one nights, aka the arabian nights, aka the thousand and one nights its really wonderful, steamy stuff. Decameron book hennepin county library bibliocommons. Burton was a 19th century renaissance man, noted for his achievements as an explorer, translator, writer, soldier, orientalist, ethnologist, linguist, poet, hypnotist, fencer and diplomat. The book is structured as a frame story containing 100 tales told by a group of seven young women and three young men sheltering in a secluded villa just outside florence to escape the black death, which was afflicting the city. If you like reading good, old stories, you may like this book. In the summer of 48, with the plague ravaging florence, ten young men and women take refuge in the countryside, where they entertain themselves with tales of love, death, and corruption, featuring a host of characters, from lascivious clergymen and mad kings to devious lovers and false miraclemakers.
With joan fontaine, louis jourdan, godfrey tearle, joan collins. The thousand and one nights, collection of largely middle eastern and indian stories of uncertain date and authorship. Director hugo fregonese and writer george oppenheimer do the unthinkable. With ninetto davoli, franco citti, franco merli, tessa bouche. Chaos reigns and the routines of daily life have been abandoned. Ten youthsseven women and three mentake turns telling stories for 10 days. Decameron nights is a 1953 anthology technicolor film based on three tales from the decameron by giovanni boccaccio, specifically the ninth and tenth tales of the second day and the ninth tale of the third. In the society that giovanni boccaccios the decameron is set in, women generally are held in a lower social standing than men. A youth is chosen by a beautiful slave girl to be her new master. A nice book, lightly read and unmarked, sadly with no jacket. Pier paolo pasolinis the decameron 1971 is an anthology film which includes nine of the stories. The decameron was written by an italian nearcontemporary of chaucer and it follows a similar structure to canterbury tales. Apr, 2014 the decamerons ending gives its stories more independent social significance than the stories of the 1001 nights. It is the story of seven young women and three men who flee the city to go to the countryside to escape.
Decameron, collection of tales by giovanni boccaccio, probably composed between 49 and 53. Decameron by giovanni boccaccio books the guardian. In the decameron, seven women and three men the brigata leave plaguestricken florence for country estates. At their leisure in this isolated and bucolic setting, they spend ten days telling each other storiestales of romance, tragedy, comedy, and farceone hundred. These are incredibly readable, and cleverly constructed little stories. Some of these date back to earlier persian, indian and arabic literature, while others were original to the one thousand and one nights. Decameron nights 1924 was based on three of the tales. Decameron book central rappahannock regional library. As often, most gracious ladies, as, taking thought in myself, i mind me how very pitiful you are all by nature, so often do i recognize that this present work will, to your thinking, have a grievous and a weariful beginning, inasmuch as the dolorous remembrance of the late pestiferous mortality, which it beareth on its forefront, is universally irksome to all who saw or otherwise knew it. The volumes comprising this book are meant to produce reactions. Boccaccios skill as a dramatist is masterfully displayed in these vivid. This book is divided into 10 days with 10 stories each day. So, be reminded that this book is an english translation.
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