Points of contact: engaging with classical authors in Boethius’ Consolatio Philosophiae

Thesis

This thesis investigates allusions to classical authors in the Consolatio Philosophiae of Anicius Manlius Severinus Boethius. I focus upon select tragedies of Seneca, Lucan’s Bellum Civile, Lucretius’ De Rerum Natura, Vergil’s Georgics, Horace’s Odes, and Ovid’s Tristia and Epistulae ex Ponto. Allusions to these works appear throughout the Consolatio. I also suggest that the two speaking characters of the work—Philosophy incarnate and Boethius as he depicts himself in prison—tend to voice allusions to these classical authors differently. Frequently, Philosophy corrects the classical text and posits the influence of a monotheistic God. In contrast, the prisoner tends to identify with the classical work and sometimes also with its author. Readers can better understand the Consolatio through close attention to the ways its characters employ allusions to the classical past. First, we can appreciate the influence of the late antique world on the composition; it is interested in classical models, but deviates from their examples. Second, we can more fully appreciate the dialogic character of the work; there is a secondary level of debate between the characters in the different ways in which they allude to classical poets. Third, we gain a sharper sense of the poetic texture of the work.

Authors: Lansing, V

• DOI: 10.5287/ora-mvzqg0exd
• Type of award: DPhil
• Level of award: Doctoral
• Awarding institution: University of Oxford
• Language: English
• Keywords: Late Antiquity; allusion; Boethius
• Subjects: Classics