Book IV IV
Quod tantos iuuat excitare motusEt propria fatum sollicitare manu?Si mortem petitis, propinquat ipsaSponte sua uolucres nec remoratur equos.Quos serpens leo tigris ursus aperDente petunt, idem se tamen ense petunt.An distant quia dissidentque mores,Iniustas acies et fera bella mouentAlternisque uolunt perire telis?Non est iusta satis saeuitiae ratio.Vis aptam meritis uicem referre?Dilige iure bonos et miseresce malis."
Why should we strive to die so many ways,And slay ourselves with our own hands?If we seek death, she ready stands,She willing comes, her chariot never stays.Those against whom the wild beasts arméd be,Against themselves with weapons rage.Do they such wars unjustly wage,Because their lives and manners disagree,And so themselves with mutual weapons kill?Alas, but this revenge is small.Wouldst thou give due desert to all?Love then the good, and pity thou the ill."
Words in this poem
- quod v.
- Quoth; said. See Quoth.
- manu n.
- One of a series of progenitors of human beings, and authors of human wisdom. [Skr.]
- serpens n.
- A constellation represented as a serpent held by Serpentarius. [L. See Serpent.]
- ursus n.
- A genus of Carnivora including the common bears. [L., a bear.]
- idem pron.
- The same; the same as above; -- often abbreviated id. [L.]
- mores n.
- Customs; habits; esp., customs conformity to which is more or less obligatory; customary law.
- referre v. t.
- To carry or send back. [F. référer, L. referre; pref. re- re- + ferre to bear. See Bear to carry.]
- wage v. i.
- To bind one's self; to engage.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Book IV 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 IV IV, in The Consolation of Philosophy (1918), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #13316, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/boethius-consolation/book-iv-iv.html, id L23724.
Form and metre
Book IV IV is 24 lines in 2 stanzas of 12 lines each. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 87%).
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.
- 2 ABBACDDCEFFE waysA · handsB · standsB · staysA · beC · rageD · wageD · disagreeC · killE · smallF · allF · illE
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Quod tantos iuuat excitare motus | 9 | ········· |
| Et propria fatum sollicitare manu? | 11 | ·········/· |
| Si mortem petitis, propinquat ipsa | 11 | ·/˘········ |
| Sponte sua uolucres nec remoratur equos. | 11 | ··········· |
| Quos serpens leo tigris ursus aper | 11 | ·/˘/˘/˘/˘/˘ |
| Dente petunt, idem se tamen ense petunt. | 12 | ···/˘//····· |
| An distant quia dissidentque mores, | 9 | ·/˘····/· |
| Iniustas acies et fera bella mouent | 10 | ·····/˘/˘· |
| Alternisque uolunt perire telis? | 9 | ········· |
| Non est iusta satis saeuitiae ratio. | 11 | ·˘/·····/˘· |
| Vis aptam meritis uicem referre? | 10 | ········˘/ |
| Dilige iure bonos et miseresce malis." | 11 | ···/˘····/˘ |
| Why should we strive to die so many ways, | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| And slay ourselves with our own hands? | 10 | ··˘˘/·/˘·· |
| If we seek death, she ready stands, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| She willing comes, her chariot never stays. | 10 | ·/˘··/˘˘/· |
| Those against whom the wild beasts arméd be, | 9 | ········· |
| Against themselves with weapons rage. | 8 | ··˘/·/˘· |
| Do they such wars unjustly wage, | 8 | ····˘/˘· |
| Because their lives and manners disagree, | 10 | ·····/˘˘˘/ |
| And so themselves with mutual weapons kill? | 10 | ··˘/·/˘/˘· |
| Alas, but this revenge is small. | 8 | ˘/··˘/·· |
| Wouldst thou give due desert to all? | 8 | ····/˘·· |
| Love then the good, and pity thou the ill." | 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.