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Book III, Part IV
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Consolation of Philosophy, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Classical Philosophy and Medieval Christianity
Wisdom, Fortune, and Happiness
The Problem of Evil
Human Free Will and God’s Foreknowledge
Summary
Analysis
While “being a king” or a king’s friend bestows power, Philosophy notes, it does not necessarily lead people to happiness. Indeed, many “kings [have] exchanged happiness for ruin” and constantly worry about losing their power. Kings’ friends have an even less certain road to power: theirs can be lost not only when the king loses his, but also if he turns against them. So kingly power does not make people happy, but rather “strikes fear into those who possess it, confers no safety on you if you want it, and […] cannot be avoided when you want to renounce it.”
Although she continues talking about kings, Philosophy has switched from explaining the moral worthlessness of “position” to explaining that of “power.” Like the other false roads to happiness, she seems to conclude that it is more likely to bring people to misery: whereas happy people would never be afraid because they keep their freedom of thought, even under adverse circumstances, kings (or at least those without training in philosophy) are always afraid because their physical well-being is constantly under threat. Indeed, power is closer to a curse than a simple bad decision, because people cannot even “renounce it” in many cases!
Themes
In a short song, Philosophy proclaims that only moderate and virtuous people should become kings, for arrogant and power-hungry kings actually become “slave[s]” to their own power.
Again, Philosophy takes this insight from Plato’s Republic, and she again turns false paths to happiness on their head, showing how what people think will give them freedom actually turns them into “slave[s]” and prevents them from fully using their reason and free will.
Themes
