Book V I
Rupis Achaemeniae scopulis ubi uersa sequentumPectoribus figit spicula pugna fugax,Tigris et Euphrates uno se fonte resoluuntEt mox abiunctis dissociantur aquis.Si coeant cursumque iterum reuocentur in unum,Confluat alterni quod trahit unda uadi;Conuenient puppes et uulsi flumine trunciMixtaque fortuitos implicet unda modos,Quos tamen ipsa uagos terrae decliuia casusGurgitis et lapsi defluus ordo regit.Sic quae permissis fluitare uidetur habenisFors patitur frenos ipsaque lege meat."
In the Achaemenian rocks, where Parthians with their dartsIn their dissembled flight do wound their enemies,Tigris from the same head doth with Euphrates rise,And forthwith they themselves divide in several parts;But if they join again, and them one channel bound,Bringing together all that both their waves do bear;The ships and trees, whose roots they from the bank do tear,Will meet, and they their floods will mingle and confound,Yet run this wandering course in places which are low,And in these sliding streams a settled law remains.So fortune, though it seems to run with careless reins,Yet hath it certain rule, and doth in order flow."
Words in this poem
- quod v.
- Quoth; said. See Quoth.
- casus n.
- An event; an occurrence; an occasion; a combination of circumstances; a case; an act of God. See the Note under Accident. [L.]
- lege v. t.
- To allege; to assert. Bp. Fisher. [Abbrev. fr. allege to assert.]
- forthwith adv.
- Immediately; without delay; directly.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Book V I 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 V I, in The Consolation of Philosophy (1918), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #13316, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/boethius-consolation/book-v-i.html, id L23728.
Form and metre
Book V I is 24 lines in 2 stanzas of 12 lines each. The metre is iambic hexameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 86%).
See other poems in iambic hexameter.
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 dartsA · enemiesB · riseB · partsA · boundC · bearD · tearD · confoundC · lowE · remainsF · reinsF · flowE
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 hexameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| Rupis Achaemeniae scopulis ubi uersa sequentum | 15 | ··············· |
| Pectoribus figit spicula pugna fugax, | 13 | ······/˘˘···· |
| Tigris et Euphrates uno se fonte resoluunt | 14 | /˘·˘/˘/·//···· |
| Et mox abiunctis dissociantur aquis. | 11 | ··········· |
| Si coeant cursumque iterum reuocentur in unum, | 13 | ···········/˘ |
| Confluat alterni quod trahit unda uadi; | 12 | ············ |
| Conuenient puppes et uulsi flumine trunci | 11 | ··········· |
| Mixtaque fortuitos implicet unda modos, | 12 | ············ |
| Quos tamen ipsa uagos terrae decliuia casus | 12 | ··········/˘ |
| Gurgitis et lapsi defluus ordo regit. | 12 | ············ |
| Sic quae permissis fluitare uidetur habenis | 13 | ············· |
| Fors patitur frenos ipsaque lege meat." | 10 | ·········· |
| In the Achaemenian rocks, where Parthians with their darts | 13 | ········/˘··· |
| In their dissembled flight do wound their enemies, | 12 | ··˘/˘····/˘˘ |
| Tigris from the same head doth with Euphrates rise, | 12 | /˘······˘/˘· |
| And forthwith they themselves divide in several parts; | 12 | ·//·˘/˘/·/˘· |
| But if they join again, and them one channel bound, | 12 | ····˘/···/˘· |
| Bringing together all that both their waves do bear; | 12 | /˘˘/˘······· |
| The ships and trees, whose roots they from the bank do tear, | 12 | ············ |
| Will meet, and they their floods will mingle and confound, | 12 | ·······/˘·˘/ |
| Yet run this wandering course in places which are low, | 12 | ···/˘··/˘··· |
| And in these sliding streams a settled law remains. | 12 | ···/˘··/˘·˘/ |
| So fortune, though it seems to run with careless reins, | 12 | ·/˘······/˘· |
| Yet hath it certain rule, and doth in order flow." | 12 | ···/˘····/˘· |
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.