The Story of Lisabetta

"Le Livre Appeallé Decameron" Paris, Bibliothéque de l'Arsenal, MS 5070, Folio 162r.

Summary

The story of Lisabetta tells the tale of a young girl who loses her lover, but transplants her affections to a pot of Basil. Lisabetta and her three brothers live unmarried together after the death of their wealthy parents. She falls in love with a shop boy who was "so charming and handsome" (Boccaccio 327). They fall in love, but they cannot be together because Lisabetta's superior social status prevents a formal union. However, this does not stop them from "spending a great deal of time together in their pleasure" until "they were no longer able to conceal their love affair" (327). The brothers find out about their relationship and decide to end it once and for all "after a long deliberation, so that neither they nor their sister might suffer a loss of reputation" (327). So they lure Lorenzo out into the countryside where they kill him and hide the body. Lisabetta is greatly disturbed by her inability to find Lorenzo and begins to ask after him. After her brothers refuse to answer her questions, Lorenzo visits her in a dream and "told her where they had buried him" (328). The next morning, Lisabetta takes a servant and travels to the spot where Lorenzo is buried. Realizing that she cannot take his whole body back with her, she cuts off his head and gives it to her servant to carry back. Once she returns home "she shut[s] herself in the bathroom and she crie[s] bitterly and long over it, bathing it with all her tears, giving it a thousand kisses on every side" (329). Then, she puts the head in a pot and plants basil on top of it. Everyday she waters the plant with her tears. The basil grew to be extremely healthy and fragrant, nourished from the decomposing flesh and masking the smell of the rotting head. Her mental and physical health begin to decline and her brothers notice an unhealthy attachment to the plant. They then take the plant away from her and search the contents of the pot. They discover "the head that was not yet so decomposed that they did not recognize it as Lorenzo from his curly hair" (330). The brothers panic and flee Messina out of fear that they would be discovered, and go to Naples to continue their business there. Lisabetta dies from a broken heart.

Symbolism of the Basil

In Italian culture, Basil plants were places on balconies to indicate to eligible young men and their parents that a young woman who resided in the house that was of marrying age and available for courtship. Readers at the time would have known about this practice, and so the fact that Lisabetta puts her lover's head in a pot of basil would have been symbolic of both her "availability" after Lorenzo's death, and the irony of her mental unavailability, as she is consumed by her grief.

In this story of The Decameron, one could argue that basil is not a symbol of hope, as it would have been for many other Italian women waiting for marriage; it is a symbol of grief. Boccaccio writes, "She spent her time sitting close to the pot, turning all of her desire upon it, for it contained her beloved Lorenzo" (329). Despite knowing that Lorenzo will never really be able to come back to her--as he tells her this in her dream--Lisabetta turns all of her energy to the pot of basil, which thrives and grows. The more Lisabetta cries over the plant and mourns for Lorenzo, the taller the basil grows and the farther Lisabetta falls into her sorrow and depression.

Epilogue/Song

The end of Lisabetta's story concludes with a song that was well known "Who was the wicked man/who stole my pot of herbs/ect." (331)

The story of Lisabetta and her plotted lover received a positive reaction from the other ladies, "they had heard that song sung many times but had never been able to determine, no matter how often they asked, the reason for its composition" (331-332). This gives the stories in the Decameron grounding in popular culture at the time. The story of Lisabetta and the basil seems to be well known and have traveled from Messina to Florence. The use of song harks back to court culture and troubadour songs which were performed. Lisabetta gains a folkloric quality from the song and how widespread it was. However, like many tales that circulate details and the exact origin are lost.

The stories that are told in the Decameron offer insight in other popular tales and methods of transmission for stories. What is regarded as a strange song by the ladies has an even more bizarre origin story that is only revealed by Filomena. The combined song and cultural relevance of basil in Italian dating culture creates a bizarre love song to move the briggatta into the next story that they tell on the day themed love that does not end well. This story is representative of the embedded Christian themes and ties to Florence and Italian culture that run throughout the Decameron.

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