Boethius, The Consolation of Philosophy 4.40

“Yes,” I said, “that is a true argument, and when I think of the Providence or Fate about which you have taught me, the conclusion rests upon strong foundations. But if it please you, let us count it among those conclusions which you a little while ago set down as inconceivable.”

“Why?” she asked.

“Because it is a commonplace saying among men—indeed an especially frequent one—that some people have bad fortune.”

“Would you then have us approach more nearly the common conversation of men, lest we should seem to withdraw too far from human ways?”

“If you will,” I said.

“Do you not think that that, which is advantageous, is good?”

“Yes.”

“And that fortune, which exercises or corrects, is advantageous?”

“I agree,” said I.

“Then it is good, is it not?”

“It must be so.”

—from Book 4, Prose 7

Nevertheless, it will take some time for the argument, however simple and direct, to sink in and do some work on our prejudices. There is a certain irony in how the things we consciously reflect upon the least will be precisely the ones we take for granted the most. The more commonly accepted an attitude is, the more likely it is to be passed over in silence. There is a heavy weight to conformity.

I am hardly an old man, but in the few dozen times I have circled the Sun, I have seen many common conceptions come and go. With almost all of them, the discussion would begin and end with an appeal to popularity. Debate would rely on certain expressions: “of course”, “obviously”, “that’s unacceptable and offensive”, “only an idiot would think otherwise”.

How often do we actually start with self-evident first principles, and then offer a valid demonstration from them? The disagreements usually arise from confusions about the terms, or from failing to address the truth or falsehood of the supposed facts from which we proceed. When people can’t agree on the most basic of measures, then only the forces of violent opinion can hold sway.

Hence, we are tempted to pontificate on what is best or worst for society, while we have no clear conception of what truly benefits or harms the individual members of society. If I wish to claim it is best for all of us, would it not also require that it is best for any one of us? When was the last time you heard someone explain what is good or bad by appealing to the fundamental identity of human nature itself?

Some begin with wealth, and others begin with power. Some begin with pleasure, and others begin with fame. In all of those cases, however, the worth of a life is dependent on what we have outside of ourselves, not who we are inside of ourselves.

By all means, hold such positions if you wish, but be expected to reasonably defend them if you at all can, and also be prepared to find that they will not be as satisfying as they at first appear.

Boethius, like other thinkers of the universal wisdom traditions, tries to get beyond the accidents to the substance. What defines the human person at the core, behind all the differences we might have?

Only the other day, I again asked someone that very question, and was once more met with an empty stare.

The very fact that I can even ask the question points to one part of the solution, just as the very fact that I can even answer in different ways points to another part of the solution.

I know it sounds terribly old-fashioned, but I am distinctly a creature of reason and of will, whatever else I may or may not possess. The operation of the former will shape the exercise of the latter. It is precisely because I have judgment that I also have freedom.

It is therefore the perfection of mind and choice, the practice of knowing and loving, that is able to perfect my nature. Whatever else may happen can only be considered within that ultimate purpose. My own moral merits are what matter for finding my happiness.

Do I already know what I must do? Then all fortune gives me the opportunity to do it.

Do I not yet know what I must do? The all fortune is able to teach me by correcting me.

This only seems inconceivable when I do not know who I am. A belief in bad luck only comes from caring for all the wrong things.

Written in 12/2015

IMAGE: Edward Burne-Jones, The Wheel of Fortune (c. 1883)