Boccaccio: The Plague In European History

People started to abandon cities and run off to the country side where it was believed to be a safer place to live, away from all other people. It is known that some family members would leave their own loved ones who had contracted the plague and venture to clean areas. Doctors would refuse treatment on the sick in hopes that they could somehow be spared for the epidemic. Yet there was one group of people who as a whole looked out for those who were sick: the clergy of the Catholic Church. Priests, nuns, and monks were typically the only glimmer of hope for the sick. With everyone else shunning the sick or abandoning them, those with the plague were happy to receive whatever help they could get.

By the second year of pandemic the plague had killed an estimated 25 million (Plague) of the peasantry, nobility, and clergy. Nobody was immune to the disease. The poor sanitation became a massive issue with the lack of

"The Black Death" alone was not the only factor that was responsible for the social and economic change although it was the most important (Ziegler 234). Even without "The Black Death" continued deterioration in Europe would have been likely. The social and economic change had already set in well before 1346. For at least twenty-five years before "The Black Death," exports, agricultural production, and the area of cultivated land had all been shrinking. "The Black Death" contributed a large part to all of this destruction and led to important changes in the social and economic structure of the country (Ziegler 234-235). The plague touched every aspect of social life (Herlihy 19). There was hardly a generation that was not affected by the plague (www.jefferson.village.virginia.edu). Families were set against each other - the well rejecting the sick (www.byu.edu). Families left each other in fear. Many people died without anyone looking after them. When the plague appeared in a house, frightened people abandoned the house and fled to another (www.jefferson.village.virginia.edu). Due to this, the plague spread more rapidly because people were not aware that being in the same house with the infected person had already exposed them to it. Physicians could not be found because they had also died. Physicians who could be found wanted large sums of money before they entered the house (www.jefferson.village.virginia.edu). When the

During the Plague, having death as a constant part of life led to serious social changes in art, religion and relationships. During the time of the plague, art began to incorporate death in almost every form: paintings, music, and literature. Whole communities of scholars were hit by the plague and schools were shut down.

"Plague”. “Best known as bubonic plague for the "buboes" (lumps) that formed on the victims'

The plague was a catastrophic time in history, and happened more than once. It took millions and millions of people’s lives. It destroyed cities and countries, and many people suffered from it.

Beginning in the mid-fourteenth century, a plague swept the world like no other. It struck in a series of waves that continued into the eighteenth century. The first wave was estimated to have killed twenty-five million people, about a third of the Western Europe population at that time. Throughout the different outbreaks, the plague, also known as the Bubonic Plague or the Black Death, caused people to react in several ways. Some people believed the plague was a medical problem that can be treated, some found themselves concerned only with their own greed, still others believed there was nothing they could do and reacted in fear, and most people believed it was a form of divine

millions of deaths from infection . The bubonic plague was so devastating to Europe because the disease was very contagious and no known medicine or medical advice given by doctors would help relieve the sick which caused Europe to decline in many aspects. The Bubonic plague was said to bypass some and affect others, some victims of the plague were children and many of them died the few that managed to survive weren't able to take care of themselves. Europes economy also began to decline as a result of the immense population decline , fewer people meant fewer workers producing food and other products, ports, and trade routes began close. The few

Throughout this awful time, many people died. When someone got the illness, it didn't take long for that person to die, it actually took only a few days. This plague caused swollen lymph nodes, fever, exhaustion, and infection in blood and lungs. People and doctors tried to make treatments to stop the sickness, nothing was affetive, though. For example, something that they did

The plague opened the eyes of the many people that followed the church. Since the followers believed in God, they thought that if they prayed, and made amends they would be spared from the sickness. Bishops and higher members of the church were supposed to be closer with god. But when the Bishops and members fell ill, a lot of the followers disbanded from the church and didn't believe in god because “he didn't help”. They didn’t want anyone else getting the plague so they didn't allow visitors to come in, leave, or enter other places..

The plague caused people to shun their family members, friends, and pretty much anyone who was associated with the disease and “abhor all contact with the sick and all that belonged to them, thinking thereby

Nurs would let there passant die so they can inherit all that person money and they would also do the samething to the next person and do it over and over. Those people were so selfish the rich people left to let the poor poor people suffer with the illness and die and when all that is happening to the poor the rich is living there life not sick and not dieing far away from the plague. Rich people would do this because they are rich and higher class then the poor and that they can afford a new house and new things. When the bubonic plague was going on families were dying and there was a lot of dead bodies of loved ones and they had barely them if they could. “ The deed by hundred both day and night and all were thrown in ditches and covered with earth.” … buried my five children with my own hands” Document 7. Loved one for them where digging and probably thinking they were next in that line it impacted more of the children and elders. “ Many victims of those plague were children who were unable to take care of themselves even if they survived infection The plague had many people questioning religion if god was real or not people would

The devastation brought on the Black Death created a divisive change in the actions of people. The general consensus that the plague was a biblical sign of pestilence lead many to seek sanctuary in church, despite the effectiveness of this method and reoccurring abandonment by the clergy. As it was seen as a divine punishment, some people began to live moderately, and limited the excesses in their lives. Contradictorily, others sought to engage in as much excess as possible. Extreme indulgence was seen as a way to avoid illness, and lead to a rise of avarice amongst the population. As more fell victim to the disease, both human and divine law were rendered irrelevant. Regardless of their opinions on excess, it was firmly believed in and practiced complete avoidance of the infected would prevent affliction.

According to Robert S. Gottfried, author of the book The Black Plague: Natural and Human Disaster in Medieval Europe, the Black Plague had a huge impact on human behavior and psychology, “the mechanics and commonplaces of everyday life simply stopped, at least initially “(77-78). With the devastation of the plague, “peasants no longer ploughed, merchants closed their shops, and some, if not all, churchmen stopped offering last rites” (Gottfried 78). In his book The Decameron, Boccaccio described many of the responses of the people during this time:

Boccaccio’s other main idea is also present in this tale. His notions that God’s rule is faultless and the tests that God places on man are meant to improve life are also apparent if Gualtieri is seen as the portrayal of God. Gualtieri initially realized the problem that his followers were foolishly judging “the characters of daughters from the ways of their fathers and mothers” (954). Therefore, as God does, he planned a flawless scheme to remove this thorn in society. He does this by marrying a woman that is of a peasant background, and he proves her loyalty and greatness by subjecting her to seemingly harsh punishments and treatments. In the end, his followers realize their mistake, causing the thorn in society to be removed (956-60). Gualtieri’s