Federigos Falcon by Giovanni Boccaccio Background Info: Part of the Decameron collection written in 14th Century Italy after

r the Black Plague or Bubonic Plague hit Florence, Italy. Just like in England, this plague reduced the populations in Europe between 25 50 %. Decameron is loosely translated as 10 days from the Greek words for ten (deca) and days (mera) The Decameron was another example of a Frame Story. The outside story is that of a journey of a group of wealthy young Florentines who leave Florence to go to a country villa to escape the plague infested city. To pass the time on the 10 day trip, they decided to elect a king or queen for each day who would select a theme for the day and each traveler would have to tell a story based on that theme. Federigos Falcon is told on the 5th day of the journey. The theme of the day was stories with happy endings. It was the 9th story told that day. Summary: The nobleman Federigo falls in love with a married woman Monna Giovanna. She is virtuous and would never consider leaving her husband, no matter what Federigo does to try and make her fall in love with him. He eventually spends all of his money trying to win her love. He is forced to move to a farm and keeps his most valuable possession; his prize falcon. When Giovannas husband dies, her son becomes heir and so does Giovanna if her son dies before he marries/becomes of age. She and her son move to an estate close to Federigo. Her son becomes very fond of Federigos falcon. He soon becomes very sick and begs his mother for the falcon- saying that if he has it he knows he will become better. Monna goes to Federigo, knowing that he is still in love with her, and asks to dine with him. Wanting to impress Monna but lacking money, he reluctantly sacrifices his prized possession for her dinner. After the meal, Monna makes her sons request. Federigo weeps and explains the situation. Eventually Monna comes to terms with what has happened and returns to her son. The boy dies soon after. Monna mourns but eventually returns to Federigo and marries him due to his virtuous and kind soul.

Name:____________________________________________________ Date:___________________
Reading Questions: st 1. Which details in the 1 paragraph reflect upon this time period (historical references)?

2.

By the end of the 3 paragraph, what have you learned about Federigo?

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3.

By the end of the 11 paragraph, what conflict does Monna Giovanna face?

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4.

How does the exchange between Monna and Federigo reflect the historical context of the story (end of 13 paragraph)?

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5.

Compare Federigos love to modern day men or women in love. What are the similarities and differences? Can you name a modern day story or movie that is similar to Federigos Falcon?

6.

Federigo and Monna have dinner. How is the meal an example of situational irony?

7.

What does the role of Monna Giovannas brothers suggest about the status of women in Europe at this time?

8.

In The Wife of Baths Tale, the old woman or crone argues with the knight saying that gentility is not the result of a noble birth but of nobile actions. Which characters in Federigos Falcon would agree with the crone and which would disagree? Explain your answer.