The Decameron, the Black Plague and the Coronavirus

Abstract

Faced with the phenomenon of the universal pandemic of coronavirus at the world level, in this work we start from the recognition of an approximation of literature to reality, a common starting point in the process of literary creation, especially in storytelling. According to the above, literature cannot be judged only taking into account its artistic function, but rather its relationship with the various forms of reality: social, economic, cultural, etc. A parallel is drawn between the “black plague”, which originated in the East, from where it passed to Italy and the other European countries, and the current pandemic of the coronavirus. In the recognition of this situation is the starting point of the development of the structure and content of the “Decameron”, the remarkable work of Giovanni Boccaccio: set of stories referred to by seven girls and three young men, each of whom recounts ten stories. The decision was taken as a measure of isolation and entertaining to evade the spread of the epidemic.