Filippo Argenti

Filippo Argenti is a large, imposing gentleman whose quick temper makes him the instrument of Ciacco’s revenge on Biondello. In the episode, a false message turns Argenti’s readiness to take offense into a violent trap: he attacks the wrong target and leaves Biondello bruised and battered.

Character and Temperament

The story presents Argenti as big, burly, and rawboned, and as exceptionally spiteful, choleric, and given to fits of temper. These traits matter to the action: Ciacco selects him precisely because a calculated provocation is likely to bring an angry, forceful response. Argenti is not shown as a detached observer who investigates the message; he takes it as an affront.

Drawn into Ciacco’s Revenge

Ciacco’s scheme answers an earlier humiliation. Biondello had deceived Ciacco with a dinner invitation that led him to an unimpressive meal at Messer Corso’s table. To retaliate, Ciacco pays a huckster to carry Argenti a flask and the fabricated request that he fill it with red wine for Biondello’s companions. Argenti knows Biondello and concludes that the message is meant to mock him. The huckster escapes before Argenti can seize him, while Ciacco watches the exchange and later directs Biondello toward Argenti.

The Assault and Its Consequence

When Biondello arrives, Argenti rushes at him, strikes him in the face, pulls his hair, tears off his cap and clothes, and beats him with fists described as iron-like. Biondello cannot explain himself because he does not know about the wine request or understand why Argenti is attacking him. The bystanders eventually drag Biondello out of Argenti’s grasp. Once they explain the deception, Biondello recognizes Ciacco’s hand in it; after recovering from his injuries, he confronts Ciacco, who warns him that another such trick will bring another beating. Argenti’s episode thus supplies the force of Ciacco’s retaliation, while his failure to distinguish the instigator from the apparent offender leaves Biondello to suffer the consequences.