The only exceptions will be certain days of the week which will be put aside for religious observances and bathing. Each day, the brigata will choose a king or a queen. On the first day, they invent a system for storytelling. They talk, play games, and sing songs to one another. In the countryside, the brigata spend their time at leisure. The group of ten young people nickname themselves “the brigata” and make plans to travel to a villa in the countryside, taking with them food, drink, and servants to make their lives easier. These three young men are named Panfilo, Filostrato, and Dioneo. Fortunately, three young men are passing by Santa Maria Novella at this exact moment and several of the young women happen to be acquainted with them. They recommend that they invite some young men to accompany them to the villa. In this fashion, they will not be constantly confronted with the specter of death in their day-to-day lives. Pampinea recommends that they find a villa outside the city and pass some time together. Pampinea is the oldest of the young women, while the others are named Fiammetta, Filomena, Emilia, Lauretta, Neifile, and Elissa. They meet at the Santa Maria Novella cathedral in Florence and discuss their plans. They want to escape the city, not just for their health but to maintain hope for the future. During this moment of crisis, seven young women from rich and noble families gather together. Traditional relationships and morals are forgotten at a time when so many people are dying in the streets. The plague is killing many people and the extent of the death and suffering means that social order and institutions are on the point of collapse. The Decameron opens with a description of the Black Death that is ravaging the Italian city of Florence in 1348.

Decamerone by Giovanni Boccaccio