Page 152 - SUMMARIES OF GIOVANNI BOCCACCIO’S DECAMEON : A Visionary Journey In 100 Stories And 100 Etchings By Petru Russu

Gianni Lotteringhi and Monna Tessa

Gianni Lotteringhi, a well-off master-spinner from Florence, is a man of
devotion more than discernment. Naïve in worldly matters, he’s respected for

his generous gifts to the Church and his earnest belief in lauds, chants, and
relics. A figure of comic simplicity, he serves as a spiritual leader among laud-
singers, cherishing prayers like talismans for salvation.

Meanwhile, his wife Monna Tessa is of an entirely different weave, keen-

witted, bold, and cunning. While Gianni busies himself with chants and
textiles, Monna Tessa orchestrates an affair with Federigo di Neri Pegolotti, a
charming gallant whose courtship is marked by secret signals and vineyard

signs. The lovers communicate through the orientation of an ass’s head stuck
on a pole, its muzzle facing Florence as a welcome signal, and Fiesole as a
warning. It’s a delightfully medieval semaphore for adultery.

One fateful night, Federigo is set to enjoy supper with Monna Tessa, two

fat capons ready for the feas, when an unexpected knocking startles Gianni
awake. The knocking, mysterious and insistent, sends him into a frenzy,
convinced that a demonic “bogey” haunts their home.

Monna Tessa, ever composed, turns panic into a performance. She convinces her
husband that only holy incantations can ward off evil. Together, they chant loudly
and comically, until the knocking fades away, either silenced by divine intervention
or, more likely, redirected by Federigo’s discretion. Gianni, elated, believes their
THE RENDITION OF GIANNI AND spiritual might has triumphed. Tessa, tactfully amused, allows him the fantasy.
MONNA TESSA IS A RIOT OF
SUPERSTITION AND SPOUSAL
STAGECRAFT, CHAOTIC SHAPES The brilliance of the story lies in how Monna Tessa simultaneously protects
FLUTTERING LIKE SPECTRAL her affair and nurtures her husband’s delusions, preserving harmony without
DOUBTS, ALL WRAPPED
IN PALETTE PLAY AND confrontation. Her intelligence never undermines Gianni, instead, it elevates
MISCHIEVOUS GEOMETRY. her as a master of quiet control, veiling truth behind smiles and suppers.
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