''Teseida'' (full title: ''Teseida delle Nozze d’Emilia'', or ''The Theseid, Concerning the Nuptials of Emily'') is a long

epic poem In poetry, an epic is a lengthy narrative poem typically about the extraordinary deeds of extraordinary characters who, in dealings with gods or other superhuman forces, gave shape to the mortal universe for their descendants. With regard to ...

written by

Giovanni Boccaccio Giovanni Boccaccio ( , ; ; 16 June 1313 – 21 December 1375) was an Italian people, Italian writer, poet, correspondent of Petrarch, and an important Renaissance humanism, Renaissance humanist. Born in the town of Certaldo, he became so ...

c.1340–41. Running to almost 10,000 lines divided into twelve books, its notional subject is the career and rule of the ancient Greek hero

Theseus Theseus (, ; ) was a divine hero in Greek mythology, famous for slaying the Minotaur. The myths surrounding Theseus, his journeys, exploits, and friends, have provided material for storytelling throughout the ages. Theseus is sometimes desc ...

(Teseo), although the majority of the epic tells the story of the rivalry of Palemone and Arcita for the love of Emilia. It is the main source of "

The Knight's Tale "The Knight's Tale" () is the first tale from Geoffrey Chaucer's '' The Canterbury Tales''. The Knight is described by Chaucer in the " General Prologue" as the person of highest social standing amongst the pilgrims, though his manners and c ...

" in

Geoffrey Chaucer Geoffrey Chaucer ( ; – 25 October 1400) was an English poet, author, and civil servant best known for ''The Canterbury Tales''. He has been called the "father of English literature", or, alternatively, the "father of English poetry". He w ...

's ''

Canterbury Tales ''The Canterbury Tales'' () is a collection of 24 stories written in Middle English by Geoffrey Chaucer between 1387 and 1400. The book presents the tales, which are mostly written in verse (poetry), verse, as part of a fictional storytellin ...

'', and therefore is the original source of '' The Two Noble Kinsmen'', a collaboration by William Shakespeare and John Fletcher.''Before the Knight's tale : imitation of classical epic in Boccaccio's Teseida'' Anderson, David. Philadelphia : University of Pennsylvania Press, c1988. The exact sources of Boccaccio's knowledge about the ancient Greek world are unknown, but is likely that he gained the knowledge through his close friendship with Paolo de Perugia, a medieval collector of ancient myths and tales. Giovanni Boccaccio 05

French poets

Jeanne de la Font Jeanne de la Font (1500–1532) was a poet and patron of the France, French Renaissance. Life and work Jeanne was the only child of Jean de la Font and Françoise Godard of Bourges. Marguerite de Navarre arranged her marriage to her secretary Jacqu ...

and Anne de Graville gained fame in the sixteenth century by writing French verse adaptions of ''Teseida''.

Synopsis

Book I: The women of

Scythia Scythia (, ) or Scythica (, ) was a geographic region defined in the ancient Graeco-Roman world that encompassed the Pontic steppe. It was inhabited by Scythians, an ancient Eastern Iranian equestrian nomadic people. Etymology The names ...

rebel against the men and elect Ipolita ( Hippolyta) as their queen. Teseo (Theseus) decides to purge this sin and launches an expedition into Scythia, the land of the

Amazons The Amazons (Ancient Greek: ', singular '; in Latin ', ') were a people in Greek mythology, portrayed in a number of ancient epic poems and legends, such as the Labours of Hercules, Labours of Heracles, the ''Argonautica'' and the ''Iliad''. ...

. He attacks the fortress of Ipolita and sends her a message asking her either to surrender or to be ready to die. There his expedition is victorious against the warrior women. She finally surrenders with a pact whereby she becomes his queen. Teseo is also attracted by the beauty of her sister Emilia. Book II: Returning home to Athens with Ipolita, he encounters on the road a group of women from Thebes. They are the widows of nobles and heroes defeated by the new ruler there, Creon, who has refused to let the bodies of the vanquished be buried. At their entreaty, Teseo reroutes his army to Thebes (sending Ipolita on to Athens under guard) and there does battle against Creon. Teseo is victorious again. In the aftermath, Teseo's soldiers find two cousins nearly dead on the battlefield. They are Palemone and Arcita, who belong to the Theban royal family. So Teseo orders them taken with him to Athens to be imprisoned for life. Book III: From out of the window of their shared prison cell, both men spy Ipolita's younger sister, Emilia, and are instantly smitten. But neither has any hope of pursuing the object of his ardor. However, at the intercession of Peritoo, a friend of Teseo, Arcita is released from prison under the condition that he will leave Athens and never return. Book IV: Both men are now beside themselves with love agony: Palemone because he remains in prison where he can see Emilia but can't reach her; Arcita because he can't even see Emilia, forced as he is to stay out of Athens on pain of death. But after years pass and he has become gaunt from his love agonies, Arcita looks very different from his previous appearance. So he decides to risk all by returning to Athens under that disguise, adopting the name Penteo. There he manages to secure a position in Teseo's court and gradually gains prominence. Book V: Still in prison, Palemone eventually learns of Arcita's return and becomes wildly jealous. This leads him to make a daring escape and then confront Arcita in a grove where Arcita frequently goes to sigh out this love. The two commence a duel to the death but are soon interrupted by Teseo who happens to be leading a hunting party through that very grove. Learning who the combatants are and the cause of their dispute, he decrees that the two must fight it out formally in the lists, the victor to win the hand of Emilia. He gives the two a year to scour the world and gather a hundred of the noblest knights each. Book VI: A year later the opposing champions arrive and are described in detail, as is the arena specially built for the contest. Book VII: Just before the morning of battle, the opposing lovers, as well as Emilia (who wants to remain single), pray to their respective deities. And each receives a positive sign that seems to contradict the signs received by the others. The battle is then prepared for. Book VIII: The two opposing armies engage in a battle that is described in detail. But it soon comes down to a contest between the two lovers. Finally, Arcita gains the victory, doing so without killing Palemone. Book IX: Arcita is accidentally injured. But he is still able to celebrate his victory and marry Emilia. Book X: Then Arcita, after much suffering, dies from his wounds. Book XI: He is given a hero's funeral that is described in elaborate detail. Book XII: In the end, Teseo determines that Emilia and Palemone should marry, and this is done. Thus all the seemingly contradictory prophesies of the gods (given in Book VII) are fulfilled."The Knight," in ''The Canterbury Tales of Geoffrey Chaucer'' translated by R.M. Lumiansky. New York: Washington Square Press, 1960, pp. 18–58.

References

* Critical Edition by Edvige Agostinelli and William Coleman, Edizioni del Galluzzo, 2015; Foundazione Ezio Franceschini, Firenze, Archivio Romanzo 30, (www.sismel.it); 538 pages: Contents and Introduction (pp. V-XXIII); Editorial Criteria (pp. XXV-XXXII); Appendices 1-7 (pp. XXXIII-CXXVIII); Bibliography (pp. CXXIX - CXXXI); Poem and Glosses (pp. 1–392); Notes to the Text (pp. 393–405); Notes to the Glosses (pp. 407–416). {{Authority control 1340 works 1341 works 14th-century poems Medieval literature Poetry by Giovanni Boccaccio Cultural depictions of Theseus Epic poems in Italian Hippolyta Works based on classical mythology