Page 96 - THE DECAMERON: 100 Days on 100 Etchings by Petru Rusu

“The Eaten Heart“
This one takes place in Provençe, where two knights named
Guillaume were friends. Guillaume de Roussillon has a
beautiful and charming wife. Guillaume de Cabestanh is
hopelessly in love with her. The lady returns her lover’s
affection, and pretty soon they’re sneaking about the castle
to fulfill their desires. But Guillaume the Husband finds out.
He’s miffed because Guillaume de Cabestanh had been his
best friend. So Guillaume de Roussillon invites his good friend
over to discuss a road trip to a major tournament in France.
On the way, he ambushes Cabestanh and cuts his heart from
his body. Roussillon has the heart sent on to his cook and
instructs him to prepare this “boar’s heart” in the most tasty
way possible. When the cooked heart arrives at the table,
Roussillon has no appetite. He gives the special dish to his
DECAMERON 96
lady, who eats up every delicious morsel. Roussillon asks if
she enjoyed the dish. Why, yes, she replies, very much so.
Then comes the big reveal. Roussillon tells her that he tore the
heart out of her lover with his own hands. Instead of gagging
and vomiting, the lady takes him to task for punishing the
wrong person (she doesn’t understand the whole friendship-
bond thing). She declares that she’ll never taste another piece
of food since she has eaten the most perfect thing in the
world. So she steps out the window casement and jumps to
her death. Roussillon panics when he sees her mangled body
on the ground below. He saddles up and heads out of town
before his wicked deeds become known. The lady’s family has
her body and the body of Guillaume de Cabestanh buried in
the same tomb at her castle.
“The Eaten Heart” retrieved from publicly source: shmoop
<https://www.shmoop.com/study-guides/literature/decameron/summary/fourth-day-ninth-story>