Boethius's most popular work is the
Consolation of Philosophy, which he wrote in prison while awaiting his execution, but his lifelong project was a deliberate attempt to preserve ancient classical knowledge, particularly philosophy. He intended to translate all the works of
Aristotle and
Plato from the original
Greek into
Latin. His completed translations of Aristotle's works on
logic were the only significant portions of Aristotle available in Europe until the
12th century. However, some of his translations (such as his treatment of the
topoi in
The Topics) were mixed with his own commentary, which reflected both Aristotelian and Platonic concepts.
Boethius also wrote a commentary on the
Isagoge by
Porphyry, which highlighted the existence of the
problem of universals: whether these concepts are subsistent entities which would exist whether anyone thought of them, or whether they only exist as ideas. This topic concerning the
ontological nature of universal ideas was one of the most vocal controversies in
medieval philosophy.
Besides these advanced philosophical works, Boethius is also reported to have translated important Greek texts for the topics of the
quadrivium. His loose translation of Nichomacus's treatise on arithmetic (
De institutione arithmetica libri duo) and his textbook on music (
De institutione musica libri quinque, unfinished) contributed to medieval education. His translations of
Euclid on geometry and
Ptolemy on astronomy, if they were completed, no longer survive.
Boethius introduced the threefold classification of music:
1.
Musica mundana - music of the spheres/world
2.
Musica humana - harmony of human body and spiritual harmony
3.
Musica instrumentalis - instrumental music (incl. human voice)
Boethius also wrote theological treatises, which generally involve support for the orthodox position against
Arian ideas and other contemporary religious debates. His authorship was periodically disputed because of the secular nature of his other work, until the 19th century discovery of a biography by his contemporary
Cassiodorus which mentioned his writing on the subject.
Boethius has been called by
Lorenzo Valla the last of the Romans and the first of the
scholastic philosophers. Despite the use of his mathematical texts in the early universities, it is his final work, the
Consolation of Philosophy, that assured his legacy in the
Middle Ages and beyond. This work is cast as a dialogue between Boethius himself, at first bitter and despairing over his imprisonment, and the spirit of philosophy, imaged as a woman of wisdom and compassion. Alternately composed in prose and verse, the
Consolation teaches acceptance of hardship in a spirit of philosophical detachment from misfortune. Parts of the work are reminiscent of the
Socratic method of Plato's dialogues, as the spirit of philosophy questions Boethius and challenges his emotional reactions to adversity. The work was translated into
Old English by
King Alfred, and into later
English by
Chaucer and
Queen Elizabeth; many manuscripts survive and it was extensively edited, translated and printed throughout
Europe from the late
15th century onwards. Many commentaries on it were compiled and it has been one of the most influential books in
European culture. No complete bibliography has ever been assembled but it would run into thousands of items.
"The Boethian Wheel" (or "
The Wheel of Fortune") was a concept, stretching back at least to
Cicero, that Boethius uses frequently in the
Consolation; it remained very popular throughout the Middle Ages, and is still often seen today. As the wheel turns those that have power and wealth will turn to dust; men may rise from poverty and hunger to greatness, while those who are great may fall with the turn of the wheel. It was represented in the Middle Ages in many relics of art depicting the rise and fall of man.
