Friar Puccio Character Analysis in The Decameron

Friar Puccio is the hapless husband at the center of Panfilo’s third tale (III, 4). His wife, Monna Isabetta, is significantly younger than he is, and either his age or his religious inclinations mean that he’s unable to satisfy her sexually. He is a pious Franciscan tertiary (meaning he took less stringent vows than full monks and still lived in the world), and he actively cultivates the friendship and spiritual mentoring of Dom Felice. He demonstrates the day’s theme—perseverance—in his willingness to engage in extreme penitential practices to gain salvation, even as Dom Felice cuckolds him with Isabetta.

Friar Puccio Quotes in The Decameron

The The Decameron quotes below are all either spoken by Friar Puccio or refer to Friar Puccio. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:

Friar Puccio thought he could detect a certain amount of vibration in the floorboards. When […] he had recited a hundred of his paternosters […] without leaving his post, he called out to his wife and demanded to know what she was doing.

His wife […] who at that moment was possibly riding bareback astride the nag of Saint Benedict or Saint John Gaulbert, replied:

‘Heaven help me, dear husband, I am shaking like mad.’

‘Shaking? … What is the meaning of all this shaking?’

His wife shrieked with laughter […] ‘What,’ she replied, ‘You don’t know its meaning? Haven’t I heard you saying, hundreds of times: “He that supper doth not take, in his bed all night will shake”?’

[…]

‘Wife,’ he replied […] ‘I told you not to fast, but you would insist. Try not to think about it. Try and go to sleep.’

Related Characters: Panfilo (speaker), Friar Puccio, Monna Isabetta, Dom Felice

Page Number and Citation: 220

Explanation and Analysis:

Friar Puccio Character Timeline in The Decameron

The timeline below shows where the character Friar Puccio appears in The Decameron. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

...Puccio di Rinieri gets on in years, he becomes a Franciscan tertiary of great piety. Friar Puccio attends mass and recites his prayers faithfully, as well as fasting and performing self-discipline that... (full context)

...acting on them because Isabetta will only agree to an assignation in her home, which Friar Puccio never leaves. After a great deal of thought, Dom Felice comes up with a plan. (full context)

Dom Felice takes Friar Puccio aside and praises him for his saintly aspirations. He offers to teach Puccio the secret... (full context)

After confessing his sins, Friar Puccio will need to abstain from even touching his wife for forty days. During this time,... (full context)

Friar Puccio plans to start as soon as possible. When he explains the plan to Isabetta, she... (full context)

One night when they’re particularly loud, Dom Puccio thinks he hears something through the wall, so he calls out to ask Isabetta what’s... (full context)