Page 222 - THE DECAMERON: 100 Days on 100 Etchings by Petru Rusu
P. 222
“King Charles the Old (the First)“
When King Charles conquered Manfred and drove the matched set together. When his subject Count Guy learns
Ghibellines out of Florence, a Ghibelline knight called of his plan, he takes the king to task. What on earth can he
Messer Neri gathered up his goods and family and fled be thinking? To violate his reputation as king and protector
the city. Neri makes an Edenic garden outside of his new to deprive a kind host of his daughters? This is exactly the
mansion in the countryside. It’s so pretty that King Charles kind of thing that got Manfred into trouble, Guy reminds
decides he wants to see it, even though Neri’s his enemy. him. Shame on him. He’s better than that. Plus, he’s way
Messer Neri makes the King very welcome anyway, serving too old for these girls. King Charles realizes that Guy’s right;
him luncheon in the garden. As an entertainment, Neri he’s got to conquer his desires if he’s going to be a real
has his lovely twin daughters, Ginevra and Isotta, wade king So he decides to control himself and deal honorably
into the fishpond to catch dinner for King Charles. They’re with Neri. He arranges good marriages for both Ginevra and
wearing very sheer dresses. The king is so enchanted by Isotta. Then he hides away in Apulia to rid himself of his
the girls’ beauty (and especially by their bodies beneath lust. King Charles does such a good job at this that he never
their wet dresses) that he falls violently in love with them suffers from such passions again. Fiammetta ends by saying
both. He continues to visit Messer Neri so that he can that King Charles was generous in this instance not just
catch glimpses of the girls. He decides he likes Ginevra because he gave the girls away in marriage, but that he did
slightly better, but plans to kidnap both of them to keep the it without “plucking any fruit” for himself first.
“King Charles the Old (the First)” retrieved from publicly source: shmoop
222 <https://www.shmoop.com/study-guides/literature/decameron/summary/tenth-day-sixth-story>
