King Alfred's circle of scholars boldly refashioned Boethius' Consolation of Philosophy from Latin into Old English, bringing it to a vernacular audience for the first time. Verse prologues and epilogues associated with the court of Alfred fill out this new edition, translated from Old English by Susan Irvine and Malcolm R. Godden.

Boethius's Consolation of Philosophy, written in Latin around 525 A.D., was to become one of the most influential literary texts of the Middle Ages. The Old English prose translation and adaptation which was produced around 900 and claims to be by King Alfred was one of the earliest signs of its importance and use, and the subsequent rewriting of parts as verse show an interest in rivalling the literary shape of the Latin original. The many changes and additions have much to tell us about Anglo-Saxon interests and scholarship in the Alfredian period. This new edition is the first to present the second prose-and-verse version of the Old English text, and allows it to be read alongside the original prose version, for which this is the first edition for over a century, and the introduction and commentary reveal much about the history of the text and its composition. The edition contains critical texts of both versions; a translation; a full introduction examining the manuscripts, the composition of the prose text and of the subsequent verse, the language, the authorship and date of the two versions, the relationship to other texts of the period and later uses of it, and the nature and purpose of the work; a detailed commentary exploring the relationship to the Latin text and to the early medieval commentary tradition; textual notes; and a glossary.

In these poems, King Alfred re-built the Latin verses from Boethius' De Consolatione Philosophiae (`On the Consolation of Philosophy') into new alliterative poems, via an Old English prose intermediary. The stirring images and stories of Boethius' original are retained - streams, legends, animals, volcanoes - and developed for an Anglo-Saxon audience to include the Gothic invasion of Italy (Metre 1), the figure of Welland the Smith (Metre 10), and the hugely disconcerting image of Death's hunt for Mankind (Metre 27). In this new edition clarity of text, informative notes and a helpful glossary have been a priority, for this is one of the most approachable of Old English verse texts; its relative neglect by specialists will mean this text will come as a new experience to many practised students of the language.

Provides a comprehensive inventory of all English translations of the 'Consolatio' of Boethius and supplies basic information on the salient features that interested readers will need in initial phases of research on the large and complex English translation tradition. This volume is a reference work, organized chronologically in its sections, with a separate entry for each translator's work. The sections are defined by the type of translations they comprise, whether complete, partial, meters only, etc. The plan of the book is encyclopedic in nature: some biographical material is provided for each translator; the translations are described briefly, as are their linguistic peculiarities, their implied audiences, their links with other translations, and their general reception. Sample passages from the translations are provided, and where possible these are two of the most well-known moments in the 'Consolatio': the appearance of Lady Philosophy, narrated by the Prisoner, and the cosmological hymn to the 'Deus' of the work, sung by Lady Philosophy.

Boethius's Consolation of Philosophy, written in Latin around 525 A.D., was to become one of the most influential literary texts of the Middle Ages. The Old English prose translation and adaptation which was produced around 900 and claims to be by King Alfred was one of the earliest signs of its importance and use, and the subsequent rewriting of parts as verse show an interest in rivalling the literary shape of the Latin original. The many changes and additions have much to tell us about Anglo-Saxon interests and scholarship in the Alfredian period. This new edition is the first to present the second prose-and-verse version of the Old English text, and allows it to be read alongside the original prose version, for which this is the first edition for over a century, and the introduction and commentary reveal much about the history of the text and its composition. The edition contains critical texts of both versions; a translation; a full introduction examining the manuscripts, the composition of the prose text and of the subsequent verse, the language, the authorship and date of the two versions, the relationship to other texts of the period and later uses of it, and the nature and purpose of the work; a detailed commentary exploring the relationship to the Latin text and to the early medieval commentary tradition; textual notes; and a glossary.

Combining literary analysis and theoretical linguistics, this engaging study provides a critical reassessment of Anglo-Saxon verse and prose and identifies an inherent poetic nature present in all Old English texts. Beechy demonstrates poetic strategies in a variety of sources, including King Alfred's version of Boethius, as well as homilies, law codes, riddles and charms, and shows that Old English texts, when considered at the level of language, are surprisingly sophisticated.