Tofano is the unlucky and bamboozled husband at the center of Lauretta’s seventh tale (VII, 4). His wife, Ghita, tricks him twice: first by taking advantage of his immoderate consumption of wine to sneak out of the house, then by luring him outside and locking him out so she can portray herself as the victim of his unjust suspicion. Like Amerigo Abate (V, 7) and Arriguccio Berlinghieri (VII, 8), he shows little regard for his own honor when he shouts abuse at her within the neighbors’ earshot. After she convinces everyone else of her innocence, he becomes excessively uxorious (showing excessive or submissive fondness towards a wife), agreeing that if she keeps it secret, she can have as many lovers as she wants.
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Tofano Character Timeline in The Decameron
The timeline below shows where the character Tofano appears in The Decameron. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Day 7: Fourth Tale
...praising Love, whose mighty powers regularly save his disciples. In Arezzo, a wealthy man named Tofano is unreasonably jealous of his beautiful wife, Monna Ghita. Frustrated by his baseless suspicions, she...
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But eventually, Tofano notices that Monna Ghita never drinks with him, and becomes suspicious. One night he pretends...
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Monna Ghita now heaps abuse on Tofano for his drunkenness, at such a loud volume that she draws the attention of the...
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Eventually, the commotion reaches Monna Ghita’s family, who come to their home, beat Tofano “black and blue,” then take her back with them. But because he loves her, Tofano...
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