8. Interpreting the Consolation

Author: Marenbon, John

Source: Boethius, February 2003 , pp. 146-164(19)

Publisher: Oxford Scholarship Online Monographs

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Abstract:

After looking at the verse in the Consolation of Philosophy and other more literary aspects of it, this chapter proposes an interpretation of the work as a whole, which takes account of the fact that it is a prosimetrum – a genre in which the claims of learning were often challenged. Boethius, the chapter argues, regards philosophy with great respect, but considers it limited when it comes to providing a comprehensive and coherent understanding of the order of things. The differing attitudes of Boethius and Augustine, as Christians, to pagan Neoplatonism are contrasted.

Keywords: pagan; Augustine; genre; verse; prosimetrum; philosophy; Neoplatonism; Consolation of Philosophy

Document Type: Research article

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