Question

"Griselda, the time has come for you to reap the reward of your unfailing patience, and for those who considered me a cruel and bestial tyrant, to know that whatever I have done was done of set purpose, for I wished to show you how to be a wife, to teach these people how to choose and keep a wife, and to guarantee my own peace and quiet as long as we were living under the same roof." Which statements describe inferences that one could reach about Gualtieri, based upon his speech in this excerpt? Select all that apply. He is rather self-righteous. He thinks very highly of his wife. He considers himself to be a role model to others. He feels sorrow and regret for his actions.w you how to be a wife, to teach these people how to choose and keep a wife, and to guarantee my own peace and quiet as long as we were living under the same roof."

Answer 1

The statements that describe Gualtieri's attitude are:

- He is rather self-righteous.

He gives the credit for this wife's reward all to himself. He considers being the one who taught his wife to be a good wife. He is just highlighting his strengths without paying attention to his wife's efforts.

- He considers himself to be a role model for others.

He thinks that this job as a husband is something to be proud of. The thinks all his actions were right, that people should follow his path and be exactly the same with their wives. He considers himself as an example of a good husband.

Answer 2

The correct answers are: “He is rather self-righteous” and “He considers himself to be a role model to others”. Taken from the “The Tenth Story” within the book “The Decameron” by Giovanni Boccaccio (1353), the speech presented in the excerpt above narrates the moment when Gualtieri explains the purpose of his tormenting Griselda all the previous years. Gualtieri reveals that he did all that in order to show her “how to be a wife” and to teach people “how to choose a keep a wife”, since he considered himself to be a role model. The speech also describes Gualtieri’s personality, since he was too proud of his own moral behaviour and beliefs, in a way that annoyed other people. In fact, it is mentioned in the excerpt above that people despised his behaviour (“and for those who considered me a cruel and bestial tyrant”). This is why one could describe him as a self-righteous person.