Boethius’ Consolation of Philosophy as a Product of Late Antiquity

Antonio Donato is Assistant Professor of Medieval Philosophy, Queens College, CUNY, USA. He has a DPhil from Oxford University and a PHD from the University of Padua.

Donato presents Boethius’s well-known Consolation of Philosophy in a strikingly new way, by stressing its author’s consciousness of himself as a Roman aristocrat, with very specific values and obligations. This thesis is developed into a reinterpretation of how Philosophy consoles, and how Boethius conveys his message through poetry and images as well as argument.

• Introduction 1 Boethius and the Ideology of the Roman Senatorial Aristocracy ­ The Ideology of the Roman Senatorial Aristocracy I: Education andLiterary Pursuits ­ The Ideology of the Roman Senatorial Aristocracy II: Wealth, Nobility,Political Prominence and Morality Boethius’ Family Heritage: the Anicii and the Symmachi ­ The Philosopher in Politics Consolation I.4 and the Ideology of the Roman Senatorial Aristocracy Philosophy and External Goods ­The Possession of Wealth Power and Dignitas The Vanity of GloryConclusion 2 ­ The Illness and the Healer Vita Activa and Vita Contemplativa in the Ideal Philosopher Boethius’ Illness: Forgetfulness Philosophy, a Peculiar Character ­ The Appearance of Philosophy Living as a Philosopher Philosophy, a ‘Dialectical’ Doctor Philosophy’s ­ Therapy and its Methods ­ The ‘Philosophical’ ­ Therapy Conclusion 3 How does Philosophy Convey her ­ Therapy?Poetry and Rhetoric as Instruments of Philosophy’s ­ Therapy Poetry and the Consolation ­ The Poetics of the Consolation Poetry, Music and ­ Therapy: the Consolation’s Sources ­ The Source of Music’s ­ Therapeutic Power: the Consolation’s SourcesMusic and ­ Therapy in Boethius’ De Musica ­ The Poems of the Consolation Poetry Quotations in the Consolation Rhetoric and the Consolation ­ The Use of Exemplum ­ The Use of Myths ­ The Use of Personi- cations Conclusion 4 Christianity and the Consolation Christianity and Classical Culture in Boethius’ Circles Christianity and Philosophia Philosophy and Wisdom in Boethius’ Works Philosophy and Wisdom in the Consolation Conclusion Concluding RemarksBibliography Index