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The Consolation of Philosophy

Boethius

AudiobooksEnglish5 h 13 min

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Boethius writes from prison, condemned to death, and at first he can only lament his fall. Then Philosophy appears to him as a woman whose height seems to…

About the recording

Author: Boethius
Read by: hugh mac, Kirsten Ferreri, David Barnes and 14 other readers
Translation: H. R. James
Length: 5:13:04
Parts: 41
Language: English
Source: LibriVox · Internet Archive

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Chapters (41)

About this book

Boethius writes from prison, condemned to death, and at first he can only lament his fall. Then Philosophy appears to him as a woman whose height seems to change as he looks, drives away the Muses of self-pity and reasons with him: Fortune by her nature gives and takes away, happiness cannot be found in wealth, office or fame, the wicked are never as powerful as they seem, and God can foresee our choices without forcing them. Prose arguments alternate with short poems, so the book moves between debate and song.

Context and significance

Boethius, a Roman senator and scholar in the service of the Ostrogothic king Theodoric, was executed around 524; his Consolation was read throughout the Middle Ages and put into English by King Alfred, Chaucer and Queen Elizabeth I. This recording follows H. R. James's translation, with seventeen volunteers reading its prose and verse in about five hours.

This is a LibriVox recording, read by volunteers and dedicated to the public domain; its audio files are kept by the Internet Archive, which plays and serves them here. Public-domain status differs from country to country, so check the law where you live before republishing it. Do you hold rights in this work? Request its removal