Zusammenfassung
Zusammenfassung von Il Novellino
Für wen es gedacht ist
For readers who love short stories, medieval courts and legends, clever replies and lessons in generosity. It also suits anyone curious about the beginnings of the Italian short story and the world that prepared the way for Boccaccio.
Worum es in diesem Buch geht
Il Novellino is a small book of short tales written in Tuscan Italian in the late thirteenth century. Nobody knows who put it together. Scholars link it to Florence and to a learned circle that knew courtly poetry, Latin writers and French romances. It is usually said to hold about one hundred tales, though old manuscripts differ in number and order. Edward Storer made the English version of the book called The Hundred Old Tales.
The tales are very short. Some run only a few lines. They tell of emperors, sultans, knights, philosophers, merchants, jesters and ordinary people who say the right thing at the right moment. Many end on a neat reply, a clever trick or a lesson about generosity. You get a lively picture of how people of that age liked to talk and to judge each other. You also meet an early step in the Italian short story. First, let us look at where these tales came from and how the book is built.
In dieser Zusammenfassung
- 1A book of tales with no authorFree
- 2Emperors and sultans set the standard
- 3Knights and ladies from the Arthurian world
- 4Quick wit wins the day
- 5Wise men and old stories
- 6Why the book is built so small
Punkt 1 von 6
A book of tales with no author
Il Novellino has no named author. It seems to have been gathered in Tuscany around the end of the thirteenth century, a time when Italian cities were growing rich and proud. The compiler drew on many sources. These included stories from the ancient world, French tales of King Arthur, accounts of famous rulers, and anecdotes that were simply told in the streets and at court.
The oldest manuscripts do not agree. Some have a prologue, some do not, and the tales appear in different orders. The title Novellino means little novelty or little news. The Italian word novella later came to mean a short story, and this book is one of the earliest places where that kind of writing shows itself in the Italian language.
The opening of the book states its purpose in plain terms. It says the tales are meant to be remembered by people of good heart, so that they can learn from fine words and fine deeds. The compiler wants readers to pick up polished speech, courtesy and generous behavior, as a young person might take lessons from a good household.
So the book is a kind of flower garden of examples. You are not asked to follow one story from start to finish. You walk along and stop at one small scene after another. Each scene holds a person, a challenge and an answer, and then the book moves on.
That’s 1 of 6 key points.
The rest of the summary, written and spoken, and the whole book: free to start.
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Questions about Il Novellino
What is Il Novellino about?
It is a collection of about one hundred short medieval tales. They tell of emperors, sultans, knights, philosophers and common people, and most end on a clever reply, a generous act or a small lesson.
Who wrote Il Novellino?
No one knows. It is anonymous and was probably compiled in Tuscany, likely Florence, in the late thirteenth century by an educated person who gathered stories from Latin, French and local sources.
Why is the Novellino important to Italian literature?
It is one of the earliest collections of short prose tales in Italian. Its brief, direct style helped shape the novella and prepared the way for Boccaccio and his Decameron.
Is Il Novellino hard to read?
No. The tales are short and plainly told, so you can read one at a time.
Are the stories in the Novellino true?
Mostly not. Some tales use real figures such as Frederick the Second and Saladin, but the scenes are anecdotes and legends. They were meant to teach and entertain rather than record history.