Which Italian author's 'Decameron' is often cited as a structural influence on the frame narrative of The Canterbury Tales?
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Correct answer: Giovanni Boccaccio
While it is debated whether Chaucer read the Decameron directly, Boccaccio's use of a frame story—a group of people telling tales to escape the plague—parallels Chaucer's use of a pilgrimage as a framing device.
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More Geoffrey Chaucer questions
- Chaucer's 'The House of Fame' prominently features which guide who carries the narrator into the heavens?
- Which of the following is the only prose tale told by Chaucer the Pilgrim after his 'Tale of Sir Thopas' is interrupted?
- In the General Prologue, which pilgrim is a 'stout carl' who wins wrestling matches and has a wart on his nose with a tuft of red hair?
- The 'Franklin's Tale' is categorized as what type of narrative?
- Which of Chaucer's pilgrims carries a 'vernycle' on his cap and has 'hair as yellow as wax'?
- To whom did Chaucer dedicate his masterpiece 'Troilus and Criseyde'?