Roman Philosopher Boethius
Famous for Writing the Dialogue On The Consolation of Philosophy
Apr 7, 2009
Boethius, whose real name was Anicius Manlius Severinus (c.475-525), was a Roman statesman and philosopher under the Gothic Emperor, Theodoric. Openly against government corruption, he was imprisoned on a conspiracy charge.
His imprisonment proved enormous to the development of Western thought. It was during this time while he waited for his execution that he wrote On The Consolation of Philosophy (De Consolatione Philosophiae), said to be the most influential book that time, second only to the Bible.
Faced with execution, Boethius seeks to find solace for his misfortunes. Despite being a Christian and acclaimed hero of the Catholic Church, his appeal for his consolation is to reason rather than faith.
The Consolation of Philosophy
Consolation of Philosophy (c. 524) takes the form of a dialogue, between Boethius and Philosophy. His thoughts and reflections are written in prose, while the wisdom of his philosophy appears in verse.
The book sets out to define some of the perpetual problems of philosophy, including the problem of evil, of virtue, free will and determination, and the nature of justice.
The Christian Scholar and Plato's Influence
Mainly motivated by Plato, he finds that "the substance of God consisteth in nothing else but goodness." This entails an interesting development in theology, given that he is revered as a Christian scholar.
Consolation of Philosophy goes on to reveal to Boethius that in so far as any man is truly good he is a god. It follows from his logic that every one who is happy is a god, but by nature there is only one God, but by participation, there may be many.
Aristotle's Influence
The discovery that God is synonymous with Good leads Boethius into considering the so-called problem of evil. In essence, his solution is found in Aristotelian principle, in which the divine providence is conceived as more like a spectator of the universe rather than an intervening entity. This amounts to a denial of God as omnipotent.
Logic Further Extended
Boethius maintains that those who do ill shall suffer more if they are not caught than those who are. Although these sounds like more of a karmic retribution, his logic is more straightforward rather than mystical. Those who avoid punishment continue to be bad rather than good, and therefore they move themselves further away from blessedness and eventually happiness. He claims that although both the virtuous and weak people desire good, only the virtuous ones get the good.
Free Will and Determinism
In discussing free will and determinism, Boethius says that the problem arises because of the paradox between man being free to choose what is good or bad, and God's knowledge of everything that will happen. In other words, if God knows what's going to happen early on, then a mortal's choice is pointless.
However, if free will is not done, then it is not being practiced, and therefore, it ceases to be free will. Boethius solution? A compromise that allows free human will in regard to moral choices.
Despite awaiting execution in prison while writing it, Boethius's Consolation of Philosophy is considered a masterpiece.
Sources:
- McGovern, Una, Ed. Biographical Dictionary. Edinburgh: Chambers / Harrap Publishers, 2002.
- Stokes, Philip. Philosophy: The Great Thinkers. London: Arcturus Publishing, 2007.
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