How we cite our quotes: (Day.Story.Page)
Quote #7
Amorous ladies, whilst a ready wit will often bring a swift phrase, apposite and neatly turned, to the lips of the speaker, it sometimes happens that Fortune herself will come to the aid of people in distress by suddenly putting words into their mouths that they would never have been capable of formulating when their minds were at ease [...].' (VI.4.454, Neifile's intro to story of Chichibio and the Crane).
This is one of those times that you wonder if God even bothers to get involved. Chichibio's told a lie and needs a witty remark to get him out of it. Seems like God has more important affairs to attend to, and Neifile only refers to Fortune.
Quote #8
[...] they rushed forward to restrain him, declaring that if anyone was to blame it was not the lady, but Calandrino himself, for he was well aware that women caused things to lose their virtue, and hadn't warned her beforehand not to show her face that day in his presence. Moreover, it was God Himself, they argued, who had prevented him from taking this precaution, either because Calandrino was not destined to enjoy this singular piece of good fortune, or because he was intending to deceive his companions, to whom he should have revealed his discovery the moment he realized the stone was in his possession.' (VIII.4.569, Elissa's story of Calandrino and the Heliotrope)
It's hard to use any of the Calandrino stories as a basis for intellectual argument, but we're going to try. Buffalmacco and Bruno have had their fun with Calandrino, and now they're trying to keep him from killing his wife. They use the "it's God's will" argument to convince him that his wife isn't to blame. Calandrino's not happy about it, but he buys it.
Quote #9
'How clearly, dearest father, do I perceive your liberality, seeing the ingenious way in which you have come to offer me the life which without any reason I was eager to take, as you discovered yourself from my own lips. But God was more heedful than I of my obligations, and in this moment of supreme need He has opened my eyes, which vile envy had kept so tightly sealed.' (X.3.716, Filostrato's tale of Mithridanes and Nathan)
Sometimes, a higher power intervenes to keep us from doing something disastrous. Mithridanes is quite thankful that he didn't get his way here, because he might have murdered a man that he was really meant to admire and revere. The implication here is that Mithridanes' own passions (envy, in this case) obscured the truth. Fortunately, God was paying attention.