Consolation of Philosophy
Quick Summary
Consolation of Philosophy is a philosophical work by the Roman scholar and statesman Anicius Manlius Severinus Boethius, written around 525 CE while he was imprisoned awaiting execution. The book, largely Neoplatonic in its approach, explores the nature of happiness, arguing that the pursuit of wisdom and the love of God are its true sources.12
The work is structured as a dialogue between Boethius and Philosophy, personified as a woman. Philosophy guides Boethius through his misfortunes, asserting that true happiness is found in virtue and an understanding of the divine order, rather than in external circumstances. It discusses themes such as providence, free will, fate, and the existence of evil, ultimately consoling Boethius with the hope of reward beyond death.12
Consolation of Philosophy was highly influential in the Middle Ages, serving as a key text for transmitting Platonic ideas and shaping medieval philosophical thought.123
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Alfred…does his rendering of Boethius’s Consolation of Philosophy. In considering what is true happiness and the relation of providence to faith and of predestination to free will, Alfred does not fully accept Boethius’ position but depends more on the early Fathers. In both works, additions include parallels from contemporary conditions,…
Read More…does his rendering of Boethius’s Consolation of Philosophy. In considering what is true happiness and the relation of providence to faith and of predestination to free will, Alfred does not fully accept Boethius’ position but depends more on the early Fathers. In both works, additions include parallels from contemporary conditions,…
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English literatureEarly translations into EnglishGregory I the Great, the Consolation of Philosophy of Boethius, the Soliloquies of St. Augustine of Hippo, and the first 50 Psalms. His Pastoral Care is a fairly literal translation, but his Boethius is extensively restructured and revised to make explicit the Christian message that medieval commentators saw in that…
Read MoreGregory I the Great, the Consolation of Philosophy of Boethius, the Soliloquies of St. Augustine of Hippo, and the first 50 Psalms. His Pastoral Care is a fairly literal translation, but his Boethius is extensively restructured and revised to make explicit the Christian message that medieval commentators saw in that…
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PlatonismPatristic Platonism…the De consolatione philosophiae (Consolation of Philosophy), written in prison while its author was under sentence of death. Boethius was also influential in the medieval West through his translations of Aristotle’s logical works, especially the Categories together with Porphyry’s Isagoge (“Introduction”), on which he in turn produced two commentaries.…
Read More…the De consolatione philosophiae (Consolation of Philosophy), written in prison while its author was under sentence of death. Boethius was also influential in the medieval West through his translations of Aristotle’s logical works, especially the Categories together with Porphyry’s Isagoge (“Introduction”), on which he in turn produced two commentaries.…
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Geoffrey ChaucerThe middle years: Political and personal anxietiesThe Consolation of Philosophy, written by the Roman philosopher Boethius (early 6th century), a Christian, was one of the most influential of medieval books. Its discussion of free will, God’s foreknowledge, destiny, fortune, and true and false happiness—in effect, all aspects of the manner in which…
Read MoreThe Consolation of Philosophy, written by the Roman philosopher Boethius (early 6th century), a Christian, was one of the most influential of medieval books. Its discussion of free will, God’s foreknowledge, destiny, fortune, and true and false happiness—in effect, all aspects of the manner in which…
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tragedyClassical theories…of De consolatione philosophiae (Consolation of Philosophy), the work of the 6th-century Roman philosopher Boethius that he translated into English. Chaucer considered Fortune to be beyond the influence of the human will. In his Canterbury Tales, he introduces “The Monk’s Tale” by defining tragedy as “a certeyn storie… /…
Read More…of De consolatione philosophiae (Consolation of Philosophy), the work of the 6th-century Roman philosopher Boethius that he translated into English. Chaucer considered Fortune to be beyond the influence of the human will. In his Canterbury Tales, he introduces “The Monk’s Tale” by defining tragedy as “a certeyn storie… /…
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- Latin literatureThe 6th to the 8th century
…De consolatione philosophiae (1882–91; The Consolation of Philosophy), written in about 524, when Boethius was imprisoned under sentence of execution. The Spaniard Isidore produced a series of encyclopaedic compilations that were used as repositories of diverse learning by later centuries. It was midway through the 6th century that the last…
Read More…De consolatione philosophiae (1882–91; The Consolation of Philosophy), written in about 524, when Boethius was imprisoned under sentence of execution. The Spaniard Isidore produced a series of encyclopaedic compilations that were used as repositories of diverse learning by later centuries. It was midway through the 6th century that the last…
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Western philosophyBoethius525; Consolation of Philosophy), however, he adopts the Platonic notion that they are innate ideas, and their origin is in the remembering of knowledge from a previous existence. This book was extremely popular and influential in the Middle Ages. It contains not only a Platonic view…
Read More525; Consolation of Philosophy), however, he adopts the Platonic notion that they are innate ideas, and their origin is in the remembering of knowledge from a previous existence. This book was extremely popular and influential in the Middle Ages. It contains not only a Platonic view…
Read More- patristic literatureThe post-Nicene Latin Fathers
His Consolation of Philosophy was widely studied in the Middle Ages, but he also composed technically philosophical works, including translations of, and commentaries on, Aristotle. Beside him should be set his longer-lived contemporary, Cassiodorus (c. 490–c. 585), who, as well as encouraging the study of Greek…
Read MoreHis Consolation of Philosophy was widely studied in the Middle Ages, but he also composed technically philosophical works, including translations of, and commentaries on, Aristotle. Beside him should be set his longer-lived contemporary, Cassiodorus (c. 490–c. 585), who, as well as encouraging the study of Greek…
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ScholasticismRoots of Scholasticism…book, De consolatione philosophiae (The Consolation of Philosophy), was written while he, indicted for treachery and imprisoned by Theodoric, king of the Ostrogoths, awaited his own execution. It is true that the book is said to be, aside from the Bible, one of the most translated, most commented upon,…
Read More…book, De consolatione philosophiae (The Consolation of Philosophy), was written while he, indicted for treachery and imprisoned by Theodoric, king of the Ostrogoths, awaited his own execution. It is true that the book is said to be, aside from the Bible, one of the most translated, most commented upon,…
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