Boethius ’s “awe-inspiring” interlocutor in The Consolation of Philosophy is a benevolent female teacher, part human and part divine, who embodies the wisdom of Ancient Greek thinkers like …

2015年7月17日 · Lady Philosophy tells us that we seek happiness through wealth (because we think it will lead to self-sufficiency), we seek happiness through public office (because we think …

2011年9月19日 · The feminine personification of wisdom reaches a lofty height in Boethius’ masterpiece, rightly called by Helleman “one of the great classics of late ancient and early …

2020年4月16日 · Lady Philosophy represents that we have to follow both our intellect and intuition in order not to be led astray by false thoughts. At the beginning of Book II, we see a …

2024年5月23日 · Recognition of Boethius’ Philosophia as allegorical personification is critical for understanding the positive portrayal given her in the Consolatio. It explains the elaborate …

Women were prizes men competed for in the ancient world, both in life and in literature. Greco-Roman writers constructed a tradition that cast the goal of the good life as a desirable woman. …

The character of Lady Philosophy is not stepping outside the bounds of her gender role for two reasons. First, Lady Philosophy is not a real, tangible woman. As the conscience of Boethius, …

Luckily, Lady Philosophy shows up to serve as Boethius’s “nurse” and emphasizes that Fortune is not the same as happiness. She personifies Fortune as a trickster goddess who cruelly …

Boethius intentionally depicts his visitor—the illustrious Lady Philosophy—as somewhere between mortal and divine, a mediator between human experience and God’s realm, the cosmos. This …

At the beginning of Book II, Lady Philosophy has grown silent. She has become quiet so that Boethius, in his weakened spiritual state, entreats her to speak. She says that she has fully …