The Decameron · Character

Spinelloccio Tanena

A Sienese friend so entangled with his neighbor's wife that discovery forces him to share her openly rather than lose the friendship.

supporting

Also known as Spinelloccio

First appearance: the sixth story

As a supporting figure in The Decameron, Spinelloccio Tanena is not background color—the story leans on what they do once the chapter opens.

A young man of Siena who begins an affair with his friend Zeppa's wife, leading to a cunning revenge.

In the storyThe Eighth StoryOpen this moment free

See Spinelloccio Tanena in The Eighth Story Book page

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Spinelloccio carries on an affair with the wife of his closest friend, Zeppa, believing the deception safe until Zeppa catches him hidden in a chest and feels the truth over his own head. Caught between shame and the bonds of long friendship, he proposes an outrageous settlement: since nothing else is shared between them, let the wives be held in common too. His willingness to convert betrayal into a pact of shared households gives the brigata one of its most cheerfully cynical tales about friendship, appetite, and the strange arithmetic of honor.

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The fuller portrait of Spinelloccio Tanena sits in Reading Lens — open the free preview to keep reading with notes on the page.

See Spinelloccio Tanena in the sixth story

Character Web

13 connections

A slice of how Spinelloccio Tanena sits in the book — open the reader for the full interactive map.

Relationship types

Friendship
Other

Character groups

Pranks and Gullibility
Moral and Romantic Adventures
Protagonist

+8 more in the full Character Web

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Narrative arc

Story tension across the book — this chapter sits in Rising action.

Setup
Escalation
Breaking point
Aftermath
Closing

In this story, the emotional and psychological peak occurs when Lisa, a lowborn apothecary’s daughter, is cons…

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Relationships

Zeppa di Mino
friendship · ambivalent
Spinelloccio and Zeppa are friends who end up in a complicated situation involving mutual… How this plays out →
Zeppa di Mino
friendship · ambivalent
Spinelloccio and Zeppa are friends who end up in a complicated situation involving mutual… How this plays out →
Zeppa di Mino
friendship · ambivalent
Spinelloccio and Zeppa are friends who end up in a complicated situation involving mutual… How this plays out →

Zeppa di Mino
Spinelloccio and Zeppa are friends who end up in a complicated situation involving mutual infidelity, but they resolve it with humor and compromise.
Zeppa di Mino
Spinelloccio and Zeppa are friends who end up in a complicated situation involving mutual infidelity, but they resolve it with humor and compromise.
Zeppa di Mino
Spinelloccio and Zeppa are friends who end up in a complicated situation involving mutual infidelity, but they resolve it with humor and compromise.

Relationship notes

How these ties play out is in the reading companion — open the free preview.

See Spinelloccio Tanena in the sixth story

In the story

Spinelloccio Tanena appears across 1 companion beat. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.

The Eighth Story

Chapter companion notes

Spoil-light check-ins for Spinelloccio Tanena unlock in the free preview.

See Spinelloccio Tanena in the sixth story

See Spinelloccio Tanena in The Eighth Story