BOCCAC'CIO, GIOVANNI. the celebrated author of the Deearnei•one, was b. in Paris. 1313. He styled himself Da CertaMe, and was sometimes named Il Ctrtaldese by others, because his family sprang from Certaldo, a village in the Florentine territory. From an early period he displayed an invincible attachment to poetry, which liis father attempted iu various ways to thwart; but, as soon as B. had attained his majority, he commenced to follow vigorously his own inclinations, poetizing both in the Italian and Latin tongues, but not with any "fine issues." In prose, he succeeded far better, developing quickly- that airy grace of style which suits so admirably his light and lively tales, and which soon placed him in the highest rank of Italian prose-writers. Ile studied Dante closely, but did not confine himself to literature properly so called. In 1350, B. formed an intimate friendslitp with Petrarch, and, following his friend's example, collected many books and copied rare MSS., which lie could not afford to buy. It is said that he was the first Italian who ever procured from Greece a copy of the Viad and the Odyssey. Ile also wrote a Genealogy of the Gods, in 15 books, which was unquestionably the most comprehensive mythological work that Europe had as yet seen. But not only was 13. one of the most learned men of his time, he was also one of the Most enlightened in his scholarship. He helped to give a freer direction and a greater expansiveness to knowledge, stimulated his contemporaries to the study of Greek, and twfshed to substitute the wisdom of antiquity for the unprofitable scholasticism that prevai I ed.
While in Naples (1341), B. fell passionately in love with a young lady who was :generally supposed to be an illegithnate daughter of king Robert. His passion was Teturnod, and, to gratify his mistress, B. Avrote 1l 1Vocopo, a prose-romance, and after Ivards La l'eseide, the first attempt at romantic epic poetry, and written in ottara rima, of which B. may be considered the inventor. In 1342, he returned to Florence, but in
1344 Went back to Naples, where he wrote his Amorosa Fiarnmetta, I1 Filostrato, and L'Anowsa Ilere, also, he composed his famous Decamerone, to please Joanna, the daughter and successor of king Robert. It consists of 100 stories, 10 of which are told each day by 7 ladies and 3 gentlemen, who had fled from Florence during the frig,btful plague of 1348, to a country villa, and who try to banish fear by abandoning every moment to delicious gayety. it is impossible to exaggerate the literary merits of the 400k. In abundance of incident especially, it is almost inexhaustible, though many of the stories are taken from older collections of COWCS et Fabliaux. It is, however, unfortunately steeped in impurity. 13. once more returned to Florence about 1350. He was now honored with several diplomatic appointments hy his fellow-citizens. and subsequently even thought of entering, into holy orders as a penance for the immoral life lie had previously led. From this artificial course of repentance he was wisely dissuaded hy Petrarch, who advised him to be content with changing his conduct. In 1373, 13. was appointed Dantean professor at Florence; that is to say, he was to deliver elueidatory lectures on the Ditina GoHaniedriz of the great poet, and zealously devoted himself to the difficult task thus imposed on him; but, his health lie resigned the ollice, and retired to his little property at Certaldo, where he died, 'Dec. 21. 1375, 16 niontlis after his friend Petrarch. Besides those works we have already mentioned, B. wrote Origine, Vita e Costund di Dante Aliglaeri, and Comment() sop•a la Cominedia di Dante. This comineLtary on the Divine Comedy extends only to the 17111 canto of the Inferno, In Latin. II. wrote, besides the Genealogia Deoruni, a work arranged in alpha betical order, De Montibus, Sittig, Fontibus, Laeubus, Fluminibus, ett.; .De CasibusVirurum et lieminarum Plustriurn; De Claris ilfulieribus, etc.