Ræd and Frofer

This study is the first concentrated investigation of the Old English Book of Consolation Meters, associated with King Alfred’s court. These Alfredian poems, which have long been neglected, recapture poetic ideas from their Latin model, Boethius’ De Consolatione Philosophiae. This volume examines the Meters as poetic responses to the prose passages of the Froferboc. The poetry provides allusive commentary on the prose as it echoes poetic ideas in Boethius’ poetry. It is the first study to benefit from the recent edition of the Froferboc, the first printed edition to restore the prosimetrum format presented in the earliest manuscript.