This also helps reinforce his argument against the dishonesty of poetry, since the kind of allegory that poetry depends on and is attacked for also exists in scripture. Boccaccio is obviously indebted to Aquinas and Dante for this idea. In fact, Boccaccio further defends poets by pointing out the poetic elements in scripture and arguing that, in fact, the Holy Spirit was a poet. Boccaccio's final and most important refutation establishes poetry for the first time as a discipline apart from philosophy and theology. There are three disciplines which can move us toward this end, and all three are equal, though dependent on different methods.
Philosophy uses reason and syllogisms, theology uses scripture, and poetry uses stories and fables.
By setting things up like this, Boccaccio allows us to evaluate poetry as a means to an end rather than as an inferior cousin to the other arts.