Consolation of Philosophy, The by Anicius Manlius Severinus Boethius (c. 480 - 525)

by LibriVox

Consolation of Philosophy (Latin: Consolatio Philosophiae) is a philosophical work by Boethius written in about the year 524 AD. It has been described as the single most important and influential work in the West in medieval and early Renaissance Christianity, and is also the last great work that can be called Classical.

Consolation of Philosophy was written during Boethius' one year imprisonment while awaiting trial, and eventual horrific execution, for the crime of treason by Ostrogothic King Theodoric the Great. Boethius was at the very heights of power in Rome and was brought down by treachery. It was from this experience he was inspired to write a philosophical book from prison reflecting on how a lord's favor could change so quickly and why friends would turn against him. It has been described as “by far the most interesting example of prison literature the world has ever seen.”

The Consolation of Philosophy stands, by its note of fatalism and its affinities with the Christian doctrine of humility, midway between the heathen philosophy of Seneca the Younger and the later Christian philosophy of consolation represented by Thomas Aquinas.

The book is heavily influenced by Plato and his dialogues (as was Boethius himself). (Summary from Wikipedia)

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  • Preface & Proem
    – 00:07:21
  • Bk1: Song I: Boethius' Complaint, and section I
    – 00:04:58
  • Bk1: Song II: His Depondency, and section II
    – 00:02:53
  • Bk 1: Song III: The Mists Dispelled, and section III
    – 00:04:08
  • Bk 1: Song IV: Nothing Can Subdue Virtue, and section IV
    – 00:16:21
  • Bk 1: Song V: Boethius' Prayer, and section V
    – 00:06:26
  • Bk 1: Song VI: All Things Have Their Needful Order, and section VI
    – 00:05:53
  • Bk 1: Song VII: The Perturbations of Passion
    – 00:01:23
  • Bk 2: Section I, and Song I: Fortune's Malice
    – 00:06:18
  • Bk 2: Section II, and Song II: Man's Covetousness
    – 00:05:15
  • Bk 2: Section III, and Song III: All Passes
    – 00:05:41
  • Bk 2: Section IV, and Song IV: The Golden Mean
    – 00:08:25
  • Bk 2: Section V, and Song V: The Former Age
    – 00:11:34
  • Bk 2: Section VI, and Song VI: Nero's Infamy
    – 00:06:51
  • Bk 2: Section VII, and Song VII: Glory May Not Last
    – 00:07:09
  • Bk 2: Section VIII, and Song VIII: Love Is Lord of All
    – 00:03:40
  • Bk 3: Section I, and Song I: The Thorns of Error
    – 00:02:43
  • Bk 3: Section II, and Song II: The Bent of Nature
    – 00:09:19
  • Bk 3: Section III, and Song III: The Insatiableness of Avarice
    – 00:05:21
  • Bk 3: Section IV, and Song IV: Disgrace of Honours Conferred by a Tyrant
    – 00:04:28
  • Bk 3: Section V, and Song V: Self-Mastery
    – 00:03:47
  • Bk 3: Section VI, and Song VI: True Nobility
    – 00:03:15
  • Bk 3: Section VII, and Song VII: Pleasure's Sting
    – 00:02:27
  • Bk 3: Section VIII, and Song VIII: Human Folly
    – 00:05:05
  • Bk 3: Section IX, and Song IX: Invocation
    – 00:12:07
  • Bk 3: Section X, and Song X: The True Light
    – 00:13:43
  • Bk 3: Section XI, and Song XI: Reminiscence
    – 00:09:56
  • Bk 3: Section XII, and Song XII: Orpheus and Eurydice
    – 00:12:37
  • Bk 4: Section I, and Song I: The Soul's Flight
    – 00:05:52
  • Bk 4: Section II, and Song II: The Bondage of Passion
    – 00:10:49
  • Bk 4: Section III, and Song III: Circe's Cup
    – 00:08:29
  • Bk 4: Section IV, and Song IV: The Unreasonableness of Hatred
    – 00:14:01
  • Bk 4: Section V, and Song V: Wonder and Ignorance
    – 00:04:05
  • Bk 4: Section VI, and Song VI: The Universal Aim
    – 00:21:02
  • Bk 4: Section VII, and Song VII: The Hero's Path
    – 00:05:21
  • Bk 5: Section I, and Song I: Chance
    – 00:07:21
  • Bk 5: Section II, and Song II: The True Sun
    – 00:03:12
  • Bk 5: Section III, and Song III: Truth's Paradoxes
    – 00:11:04
  • Bk 5: Section IV, and Song IV: A Psychological Fallacy
    – 00:10:49
  • Bk 5: Section V, and Song V: The Upward Look
    – 00:06:20
  • Bk 5: Section VI & Epilogue
    – 00:15:35
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