The Consolation of Philosophy

An eminent public figure under the Gothic emperor Theodoric, Boethius (c. 475-525 AD) was also an exceptional Greek scholar. It was to the Greek philosophers that he turned when he fell from favor and was imprisoned in Pavia. Written in the period leading up to his brutal execution, it is a dialogue that alternates from prose to verse between the ailing prisoner and his'nurse' Philosophy, whose instruction on the nature of fortune and happiness, good and evil, fate and free will, restore his health and bring him to enlightenment. The clarity of Boethius's thought and his breadth of vision made The Consolation of Philosophy hugely popular throughout medieval Europe and his ideas suffused the thought of Chaucer and Dante. Copyright (C) Muze Inc. 2005. For personal use only. All rights reserved.