Boethius Pursuit Of Fame In Dante's Inferno

Acquiring fame is a prodigious task desired by most and achieved by very few. Once attained, his/her name would be heard long past their time on earth. For many people, there are only positive implications in having ever-lasting fame. Jesus Christ’s fame, for example, allowed him to spread Christianity across the globe, long after his execution. For some, the glory and worship received on Earth is reward enough to lust after fame. In the Inferno, Dante emphasized the importance of fame and believed it to be a valuable asset. On the contrary, some of the tormented souls overtly denounce fame, for it is actually infamy. Although there are clear advantages to acquiring fame, there are no deficits of disadvantages. Boethius exerts his own negative

thoughts of fame in, The Consolations of Philosophy. Boethius gives no worth to having Earthly fame, for it is only relative to time and space. Whether or not fame is advantageous is relative to the act that was done to achieve it and the value it is given by that person.
The fame Jesus received after his execution proves to be one of the greatest examples of the advantages of becoming widely known. During Jesus’ lifetime, he was not a well-known man. “Jesus himself wrote nothing and nothing was written about him during his lifetime. In the generations following his death, both Roman and Jewish historians paid him scant attentions” (Perry 99). Nonetheless, Jesus spent his life rigorously trying to spread God’s word. At the age of thirty, “Jesus began to preach the coming of the reign of God and the need for people to repent” (Perry 99). Very few citizens listened to his warnings, and frankly, many resented him for spreading this declaration of doom. “Jewish leaders believed that Jesus was setting the authority of his person over Mosaic Law- an unpardonable blasphemy in their eyes” (Perry 100). Jesus was accused of high treason and was sentenced to death by crucifixion. Although Jesus’ body died on the cross, his message was granted immortality.
Jesus only became an influential religious figure following his crucifixion. At the time of his death, Christianity was a small Hebrew sect that had little prospects of persistence. When Jesus was resurrected three days later, people began “believing that Jesus was an inspired prophet or even the long awaited Messiah” (Perry 100). Jesus was now seen as a divine-savior, making him immeasurably famous. Without the fame received after his death, Jesus would not have been successful in spreading God’s word. Jesus and his teachings are virtually immortal because of the beneficial fame he achieved on earth.
Dante also felt that acquiring fame could present the advantage of immortality. In Dante’s Inferno, Dante, the character, addresses fame as universally desired and an important asset. Virgil says to the souls, “[Dante] can give you what all long for here… he still can spread your legend in the world” (Dante 357). Consequently, throughout the Inferno, souls ask Dante to remember their names and grant them immortality through the fame they would receive. Brunetto Latini, for example, asks Dante to mention his great work, the Thesaurus, because he lives on through it (Dante 208-9). Dante grants these favors to many of the souls: “O noble soul, whose fame the world continues to preserve and will preserve as long as world there is” (Dante 81). Furthermore, Dante respects the souls that have received fame on Earth. When a soul utters, “Let our great worldly fame persuade your heart to tell us who you are”, he grants them his name (Dante 215). Additionally, souls that are known for extraordinary tasks are granted favors in hell: “The honored name they bear that still resounds above in your own world wins Heaven’s favor for them in this place” (Dante 99). Dante only sees the benefits of preserving one’s name on earth after the body dies. However, not all of the souls in hell feel the same way as Dante.
Though many souls ask Dante to spread their name and achievements on Earth, some souls refuse to announce their identity. These souls recognize that the fame they would receive would more likely be infamy. Dante, the poet, makes this point with the figure of Vanni Fucci, who is the first soul to ask Dante to not spread his story on Earth. Fucci pleads, “I don't want you to rejoice at having seen me” (Dante 291). Another soul, Bocca degli Abati, declares that infamy is not a good way to be remembered and refuses to publicize his name. Dante attempt to coax a name from him by saying, “I am a living man and it might serve you well, if you seek fame, for me to put your name down in my notes.” He does not want to live on in infamy, so he answers, “That’s the last thing I would want!” (Dante 365). To Bocca, fame from crime would not grant him any happiness. Regardless of the fame the souls may receive on earth, they are tortured in hell for eternity. While Dante, the poet, notes that fame attained from honest achievements can benefit a soul for eternity, he cautions that fame stemming from crime earns the criminal no advantages.
Whereas Dante feels that fame grants immortality, Boethius argues the opposite: that fame is only temporary.

Boethius stands firmly against the advantages of fame in The Consolation of Philosophy. Boethius maintains that fame, like every worldly achievement, is taken away some time after death: “Should you believe extended life will surely dawn/ Through tidings of your earthly fame,/ Mere lapse of time this expectations will dethrone./ a second death waits you to claim” (Boethius 37). Lady philosophy proves this by asking, “How many men, highly famed in their own day, have been expunged from our memory…?” (Boethius 36). Philosophy asserts that not only is fame temporary, it is also relative to where you live. She inquires Boethius to think, “Perhaps you have not learnt of the flight of Anaxagoras, of the poison forced on Socrates, of the torturing of Zeno, for these took place abroad; but at any rate you have been able to acquaint yourself with such figures as Canius, and Seneca, and Soranus, for the tradition about them is still fresh and famous” (Boethius 7). Corroborating her argument, Boethius was only aware of the events that happened in close proximity to him. Now that she has proved that fame is only temporary and relative to proximity, Lady philosophy goes of to show that fame does not have any real value in the grand scheme of the

universe.
Lady Philosophy asserts that fame is not worthy of any passing thought, for it is infinitesimal compared to the vast cosmos. She powerfully affirms, “Fame which survives over any length of time, however extensive, if compared with unbounded eternity, is seen to be not just trifling but wholly non-existent” (Boethius 36). The argument Lady Philosophy is making extends to Boethius’ religion; Boethius believes that only God can judge ones worth. On earth, “What some of them regard as praiseworthy other condemn as punishable” (Boethius 35). Thus, human judgment is unreliable and effectively worthless. She emphasizes her opinion when declaring, “I consider mass popularity not even worthy of mention, for it does not proceed from ripe judgment, and never remains consistent” (Boethius 50). Therefore, there is no advantage in attempting to achieve something that is essentially meaningless.
Even though Boethius argues that being famous on earth has no real significance, in The Consolation of Philosophy, he does not definitively prove that there are any major disadvantages. The argument that fame is only temporary, relative to proximity and meaningless in the grand scheme of the earth does not show that being famous would cause any detriments. However, the example of Jesus Christ demonstrates that there are significant advantages of fame. Without the fame Jesus received after death, Christianity would not have continued to extend around the world. Even thousands of years later, Christianity remains one of the most prevalent religions in the history of earth, credited to Jesus. Jesus became famous for the sincere achievements he made on earth. But not all fames were achieved though sincerity. Dante creates a compelling and comprehensive argument on fame, in the Inferno. Dante clarifies that glory and infamy are two distinct attainments. While fame attained from positive achievements can benefit a soul for eternity, fame achieved from crime earns the criminal no advantages. Irrefutably, the advantages of fame only outweigh the disadvantages of fame when it is achieved by respectable means.