"Human it is to have compassion on the unhappy."
— Giovanni Boccaccio (1313-1375)
"Although love dwells in gorgeous palaces, and sumptuous apartments, more willingly than in miserable and desolate cottages, it cannot be denied but that he sometimes causes his power to be felt in the gloomy recesses of forests, among the most bleak and rugged mountains, and in the dreary caves of a desert."
— Giovanni Boccaccio (1313-1375)
"Much is required of those who are happy, especially if they have needed comforting in the past, and have received it."
— Giovanni Boccaccio (1313-1375)
"In the affairs of this world, poverty alone is without envy."
— Giovanni Boccaccio (1313-1375)
"People tend to believe the bad rather than the good."
— Giovanni Boccaccio (1313-1375)
"You must read, you must persevere, you must sit up nights, you must inquire, and exert the utmost power of your mind. If one way does not lead to the desired meaning, take another; if obstacles arise, then still another; until, if your strength holds out, you will find that clear which at first looked dark."
— Giovanni Boccaccio (1313-1375)
"To have compassion for those who suffer is a human quality which everyone should possess, especially those who have required comfort themselves in the past and have managed to find it in others."
— Giovanni Boccaccio (1313-1375)
“In this world, you only get what you grab for.”
— Giovanni Boccaccio (1313-1375)
“While farmers generally allow one rooster for ten hens, ten men are scarcely sufficient to service one woman.”
— Giovanni Boccaccio (1313-1375)