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Boethius' "Consolatio Philosophiae is one of those exceptional works that circulated widely throughout such diverse medieval cultures as the schools and universities, the court, and religious houses. It spawned a rich tradition of Latin commentaries and was a major force in shaping vernacular literary traditions, including the works of Jean de Meun, Dante, and Chaucer.
The changing perceptions of the "Consolatio are the subject of this collection of new essays. The first section is devoted to the Latin commentary tradition (William of Conches, Nicholas Trevet, and Pierre d'Ailly). The other sections explore the vernacular traditions (Italian, French, German, English, and Dutch).
The book underlines the interactions between the Latin and the vernacular and between literary and scholastic contexts, and the focus throughout is on the intellectual and institutional background of the works discussed.
About the author
Maarten J.F.M. Hoenen is Professor of Philosophy the University of Freiburg. He has published several books and numerous articles on medieval philosophy and theology.
Lodi Nauta holds a Royal Dutch Academy chair in medieval and Renaissance philosophy at the University of Groningen. He has published an edition of William of Conches' commentary on Boethius' Consolatio Philosophiae and is finishing a book on Lorenzo Valla. He has edited several books, translated Dante's
De vulgari eloquentia in Dutch, and is the author of several articles on medieval and Renaissance philosophy and on Thomas Hobbes.
