Abstract

Boethius’ “Consolation of Philosophy” combines a philosophical dialogue with the use of prosimetrum. This mixture of prose and poetry in several meters originally served a satirical criticism of high culture literature and/or philosophy. With regard to the “Consolation”, however, the interpretation of the prosimetrum is a matter of controversy. This article uses insights from modern genre theory to understand the processes of genre transformation active in the “Consolation”, and highlights Martianus Capella as an important mediator between earlier prosimetric satires and Boethius’ “Consolation”. Then, the article analyses how philosophical dialogue and prosimetric satire are evoked throughout the “Consolation” to create a generic hybrid in which both genres are assigned a proper function in relation to the aim of the “Consolation”: to assure the reader of the existence of a cosmic moral order.