"The Pot of Basil" is an organic narrative story about a young woman named Lisabetta who lived with her three wealthy brothers. Lisabetta eventually falls in love with a young man named Lorenzo who had been hired to work for the brothers. When the brothers learn of this they take Lorenzo deep into the woods and murder him, telling Lisabetta that he was away on a trading assignment. Every day she waits eagerly for his return, but as his absence grew longer and longer she becomes heart broken. One night after she cries herself to sleep she has a dream in which Lorenzo's ghost appears and tells her of his death and where he was buried. The next day Lisabetta goes to the place of his burial and finds his body. After moving him to a more proper burial ground she removes his head. Upon returning home she plants the head in a large pot with several sprigs of basil. Every day her tears water the soil as Lorenzo's decaying head fertilizes it, making the basil plant grow strong and fragrant. When her brothers notice this they have the basil removed from her room, and after examining its contents discovered that their secret is known. The brothers bury the head and flee to Naples. Lisabetta mourns even more now that she has lost all trace of her beloved Lorenzo, and eventually she falls ill and dies.
This is an intriguing story, and though the narrative is difficult to compare to modern works, the metanarrative can be seen in writing throughout history. It is the classic theme of forbidden love: Lisabetta wants to be with Lorenzo, but certain social proprieties prevent it. Without sounding overly fictional, there is a fairy tale like quality to this story. Many impossible events, like Lorenzo's ghost, Lisabetta crying herself to death, and "planting" the head of a loved one, add a surreal and fantastic shimmer to this otherwise grim tale. The film adaptation of "The Decameron," Boccaccio's epic that contains "Pot of Basil" is praiseworthy but lacks much of the subtlety of the book.