Book III IV
Quamuis fluente diues auri gurgiteNon expleturas cogat auarus opesOneretque bacis colla rubri litorisRuraque centeno scindat opima boue,Nec cura mordax deseret superstitem,Defunctumque leues non comitantur opes.
Although the rich man from his mines of goldDig treasure which his mind can never fill,And lofty neck with precious pearls enfold,And his fat fields with many oxen till,Yet biting cares will never leave his head,Nor will his wealth attend him being dead.
Quamuis se Tyrio superbus ostroComeret et niueis lapillis,Inuisus tamen omnibus uigebatLuxuriae Nero saeuientis.Sed quondam dabat improbus uerendisPatribus indecores curules.Quis illos igitur putet beatosQuos miseri tribuunt honores?
Though fierce and lustful Nero did adornHimself with purple robes, which pearls did grace,He did but gain a general hate and scorn.Yet wickedly he officers most baseOver the reverend Senators did place.Who would esteem of fading honours thenWhich may be given thus by the wickedest men?
Words in this poem
- enfold v. t.
- To infold. See Infold.
- wealth n.
- Weal; welfare; prosperity; good. [OE. welthe, from wele; cf. D. weelde luxury. See Weal prosperity.]
- omnibus n.
- A long four-wheeled carriage, having seats for many people; especially, one with seats running lengthwise, used in conveying passengers short distances. [L., for all, dat. pl. from omnis all. Cf. Bus.]
- nero n.
- A Roman emperor notorius for debauchery and barbarous cruelty; hence, any profligate and cruel ruler or merciless tyrant.
- quondam a.
- Having been formerly; former; sometime. [L., formerly.]
- reverend a.
- Worthy of reverence; entitled to respect mingled with fear and affection; venerable. [F. révérend, L. reverendus, fr. revereri. See Revere.]
- fading n.
- An Irish dance; also, the burden of a song.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Book III IV is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Theological Tractates and The Consolation of Philosophy, Project Gutenberg ebook #13316; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Boethius, Book III IV, in The Consolation of Philosophy (1918), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #13316, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/boethius-consolation/book-iii-iv.html, id L23713.
Form and metre
Book III IV is 27 lines in 4 stanzas. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 86%).
See other poems in iambic pentameter.
Measured by Laurel's pipeline, not copied from a handbook: how stress and metre are counted, how rhyme is lettered, how a drifted rhyme is found. Where the dictionary cannot confirm a rhyme the letter is withheld, not guessed.
Rhyme words, stanza by stanza
The word that ends each line, lettered by the rhyme it makes; a dash is a line whose rhyme the dictionary could not confirm.
- 1 -A---A gurgite · opesA · litoris · boue · superstitem · opesA
- 2 ABABCC goldA · fillB · enfoldA · tillB · headC · deadC
- 3 -A-AA--- ostro · lapillisA · uigebat · saeuientisA · uerendisA · curules · beatos · honores
- 4 ABABBCC adornA · graceB · scornA · baseB · placeB · thenC · menC
Scansion, line by line
Each line with its syllable count and the stresses the words themselves fix: / stressed, ˘ unstressed, · a syllable the word leaves free and the metre decides. Read against iambic pentameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| Quamuis fluente diues auri gurgite | 8 | ········ |
| Non expleturas cogat auarus opes | 10 | ·········· |
| Oneretque bacis colla rubri litoris | 12 | ·····/˘····· |
| Ruraque centeno scindat opima boue, | 11 | ··˘/˘······ |
| Nec cura mordax deseret superstitem, | 12 | ······˘/···· |
| Defunctumque leues non comitantur opes. | 10 | ·········· |
| Although the rich man from his mines of gold | 10 | ·········· |
| Dig treasure which his mind can never fill, | 10 | ·/˘····/˘· |
| And lofty neck with precious pearls enfold, | 10 | ·/˘··/˘·˘/ |
| And his fat fields with many oxen till, | 10 | ·····/˘/˘· |
| Yet biting cares will never leave his head, | 10 | ·/˘··/˘··· |
| Nor will his wealth attend him being dead. | 10 | ····˘/·/˘· |
| Quamuis se Tyrio superbus ostro | 11 | ···/······· |
| Comeret et niueis lapillis, | 8 | ········ |
| Inuisus tamen omnibus uigebat | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| Luxuriae Nero saeuientis. | 6 | ··/˘·· |
| Sed quondam dabat improbus uerendis | 11 | ·/˘········ |
| Patribus indecores curules. | 8 | ········ |
| Quis illos igitur putet beatos | 11 | ········˘/˘ |
| Quos miseri tribuunt honores? | 8 | ······/˘ |
| Though fierce and lustful Nero did adorn | 10 | ···/˘/˘·˘/ |
| Himself with purple robes, which pearls did grace, | 10 | ˘/·/˘····· |
| He did but gain a general hate and scorn. | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| Yet wickedly he officers most base | 10 | ·/˘˘·/˘˘·· |
| Over the reverend Senators did place. | 10 | ··/˘˘/˘˘·· |
| Who would esteem of fading honours then | 10 | ··˘/·/˘/˘· |
| Which may be given thus by the wickedest men? | 10 | ···/···/˘· |
The reader shows the same poem with its rhymes coloured and a stress row above each line, the notes beside their stanzas, and any word's definition on a tap; the analysis page takes the whole book apart. How every part of this site was made.