Giovanni Boccaccio was born in 1313, likely in Florence or Certaldo, and is one of the most important writers in European literature. Along with Dante and Petrarch, he is part of the so-called “Three Crowns” (Tre Corone), the three authors who founded the Italian language and literature. Boccaccio was the son of a wealthy Florentine merchant, and this background greatly influenced his narrative style. His most famous work is the Decameron, a collection of one hundred novellas written shortly after the devastating Black Death epidemic of 1348. The book tells the story of ten young people who flee Florence to escape the contagion and decide to pass the time by telling stories for ten days. The novellas in the Decameron deal with themes such as love, intelligence, and fortune, offering a highly realistic portrait of 14th-century society. Thanks to this work, Boccaccio is considered the father of modern prose fiction.
