Read the following passage: When they saw all this, my men begged me to let them first steal some cheeses, and make off with them to the ship; they would then return, drive down the lambs and kids, put them on board and sail away with them. It would have been indeed better if we had done so but I would not listen to them, for I wanted to see the owner himself, in the hope that he might give me a present.
Based on this passage, what is the primary motivation for Ulysses’ actions?

to gain wealth
to gain prestige
to gain directions
to gain respect from his crew

the servant does not kill the child oedipus as he was ordered to do because "he pitied the child" based on the oedipus rex story. the servant was ordered to kill the child because of the prophecy that predicted king laius' death. the king already had attempted to hurt oedipus by piercing oedipus's ankle. however, the servant did not finish the job and he rather saved the baby oedipus.

explanation:

boccaccio employs the voice of his narrator dioneo to represent his ideas on the tension between masculinity and femininity.  while dioneo excites the members of the brigata and recognizes women for their unique skills and independent ideas, he concludes the decameron with a story reminiscent of the society from which these young aristocrats escaped, revealing misogynistic overtones.  dioneo boccaccio is able to explore the gender disparity which is inherent in 14th century florentine society.