Previous
Filippo’s Son
Tancredi, the Prince of Salerno, appears in Fiammetta’s fourth tale (IV, 1). He is a good ruler and excellent man, but his selfish love of his daughter, Ghismonda, made him slow to find her a husband after she was widowed. When she begins an affair with Tancredi’s valet, Guiscardo, he feels betrayed by his child and his servant; in his extreme wrath he has Guiscardo executed, then cuts out his heart and sends it to Ghismonda. In declaring Guiscardo unworthy of his daughter, he represents a noble attitude that class should be defined by wealth and birth (which are accidents of fortune) rather than character. His story mirrors that of Amerigo Abate (V, 7).
Tancredi Quotes in The Decameron
The The Decameron quotes below are all either spoken by Tancredi or refer to Tancredi. 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:
).
Day 4: First Tale
Quotes
But leaving this aside, consider for a moment the principles of things, and you will see that we are all of one flesh and that our souls were created by a single Maker, who gave the same capacities and powers and faculties to each. We were all born equal, and still are, but merit first set us apart, and those who had more of it, and used it the most, acquired the names of nobles to distinguish themselves from the rest. Since then, this law has been obscured by a contrary practice, but nature and good manners ensure that its force still remains unimpaired; hence any man whose conduct is virtuous proclaims himself a noble, and those who call him by any other name are in error.
Related Characters:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Save those tears of yours for a less coveted fate than this of mine, Tancredi, and shed them not for me, for I do not want them. Who ever heard of anyone, other than yourself, who wept on achieving his wishes? But if you still retain some tiny spark of your former love for me, grant me one final gift, and since it displeased you that I should live quietly with Guiscardo in secret, see that my body is publicly laid to rest beside his in whatever spot you choose to cast his remains.
Get the entire The Decameron LitChart as a printable PDF.
Tancredi Quotes in The Decameron
The The Decameron quotes below are all either spoken by Tancredi or refer to Tancredi. 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:
).
Day 4: First Tale
Quotes
But leaving this aside, consider for a moment the principles of things, and you will see that we are all of one flesh and that our souls were created by a single Maker, who gave the same capacities and powers and faculties to each. We were all born equal, and still are, but merit first set us apart, and those who had more of it, and used it the most, acquired the names of nobles to distinguish themselves from the rest. Since then, this law has been obscured by a contrary practice, but nature and good manners ensure that its force still remains unimpaired; hence any man whose conduct is virtuous proclaims himself a noble, and those who call him by any other name are in error.
Related Characters:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Save those tears of yours for a less coveted fate than this of mine, Tancredi, and shed them not for me, for I do not want them. Who ever heard of anyone, other than yourself, who wept on achieving his wishes? But if you still retain some tiny spark of your former love for me, grant me one final gift, and since it displeased you that I should live quietly with Guiscardo in secret, see that my body is publicly laid to rest beside his in whatever spot you choose to cast his remains.
