The Consolation Of Philosophy By Boethius Analysis

Once Upon A Time In beautiful and inspiring stories passed down throughout the ages, told to children young and old, good always wins. However, is this a realistic notion? Is good always more powerful than evil? Many humans believe that power is the source of happiness. As humans, we are born to strive for good, despite the reasons serving selfish purposes.[1] Evil, however, attempts to obtain happiness through sin and wretchedness, but results in disappointment and weakness. Throughout history, men and women alike have sought to acquire one thing in particular: power. The desire to have authority over others is often the cause of wars, feuds, and disagreements. In The Consolation of Philosophy by Boethius, Lady Philosophy says, “Power is the strength to resist temptation and evil.”[2] If this is so, then evil, in itself, is weak, for it must be avoided if one seeks to attain true power. A person who resorts to evil does not have self-control against temptation and permits himself to do more evil.

He can do all things. If God is good and the opposite of good is evil, then evil cannot be all-powerful. In fact, this proves that the better you are, the more powerful you become. “Therefore, since He who can only do good can do all things, then those who do evil cannot do all things.”[8] Consider the story of The Little Mermaid by Hans Christian Andersen, evil appears to have won in the end, for the little mermaid was transformed to sea foam instead of fully human as she wished. But at a closer glance she, because she is good, selflessly gave up her human life. She would not kill the prince for a human soul.[9] In this example, we can see that the little mermaid was ultimately set free because of the good act that she did. This is not the happy ending that most would prefer, but the good ending was good overcome evil and conquered in the