According to the book Consolidation of Philosophy by Boethius, being happy in the material world is what all humans seek to attain whether they are good or evil. However, what kind of happiness each human attains depends on that individual. In the book, there exists a true happiness and material world happiness, which one can attain only through his or her knowledge. In short, man is only able to achieve happiness through his or her power of knowledge.
Happiness is a state of mind that all men hope to achieve, but men can also be fooled by fake happiness. In the modern world, the definition of happiness is to be in a state of happy, where a man is pleasured, pleased, favored by fortune, and content. In the same sense, Boethius explains that
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Without the knowledge of true happiness “the world does not judge actions on their merit, but on their chance results, and they consider that only those things which are blessed with a happy outcome have been undertaken with sound advice.” Meaning that the ignorant ones will be the one to suffer, as their fake happiness is not long lasting. When a person obtains the knowledge of a greater happiness in life they will come across the fight between divine providence and free will. Boethius explains providence as the divine reason and the mind of god who planned the multitude of events. Boethius way of defining Providence makes it seem as if a person has no free will towards their life, but that is not the case. Boethius knows and believes that god is the all-mighty good, who created this universe with good in mind. However, halfway through his dialogue with philosophy he comes to a conclusion that even though god has planned the course of man life through providence, a man still has their free will. Philosophy even says that freedom exists and “it would be impossible for any rational creature to exist without it” . Even though future may have been pre-determined by the providence, the human mind still has their free will through their knowledge. Through the use of a person knowledge one can know how to achieve their own free will because “
In the Consolation of Philosophy, while wallowing in his sorrow, Boethius is interrupted by Lady Philosophy who seeks to help him in his hour of need. Driving away the Muses, Lady Philosophy begins her treatment of Boethius. She does this by walking Boethius through a series of discussions, eventually leading to conclusions that should comfort Boethius. While Lady Philosophy attempts to logically show that all fortune is good, in an effort to comfort Boethius, she also shows that humans are incapable of fully understanding this and therefore complete comfort in this knowledge is impossible without faith. She attempts to show Boethius, through the explanation of Providence and Fate, that their bad fortune does not exist but at the same time also gives him several reasons why he will not be able to understand it. She makes it very clear that man cannot understand Providence’s working out for good because man only sees confusion and disorder and they cannot know peoples inward motives and inclinations. This means that Boethius cannot find comfort in logic and reason alone, but must have some form of faith.
...d appear to be unrestrained and unpunished because their wickedness and the lack of true happiness that is associated with it is their punishment (Consolation of Philosophy 94). To both Augustine and Boethius, God is completely good and sovereign. However, He allows men free will and the punishment or rewards that come with these free decisions.
Boethius was wrongfully accused of treason and imprisoned, leading him to question as to why God would allow bad things to happen to good people and how you can not be completely happy and there is never true happiness. The fear of losing happiness destroys happiness. "No man is so completely happy that something somewhere does not clash with his condition. It is the nature of human affairs to be fraught with anxiety; they never prosper perfectly and they never remain constant" Boethius (30). This quote represents the fear of losing happiness destroys happiness in my
When I look at the last argument I feel that it is some thing made up by Boethius, after all he did write the book to console himself. It says that anything that happens to a person be it good or bad is always good. Because bad events make a person more virtuous. These same believes are used in some cults and terrorists groups, they say that through death a person can gain true happiness by going to heaven. The reality is that we are responsible for our own individual life and our actions define us and out future. So if some thing bad happens to a person he should take actions to make things right.
Boethius places an increased emphasis on God’s eternal goodness to prove He can neither causes nor condone wickedness, intending to provide comfort for the virtuous affected by injustice. Boethius’s belief concerning the interaction of evil and justice in the Consolation of Philosophy intends to comfort the virtuous from the seemingly wicked world. Lady Philosophy, representing reason, soothes Boethius’s initial concerns by explaining how evil, the absence of good, can never defeat justice, and that the wicked will receive their punishment when Providence sees fit. Boethius also places an increased emphasis on God’s eternal goodness to clarify the role of Providence in the natural plan of the world. Boethius advises the reader that true happiness can only be found in the stability of the self and a virtuous lifestyle.
It is impossible to taste the sweet without having first tasted the sour. This is one of the many lessons found within Genesis 2.0 and more specifically the story of Adam and Eve. It is also from this twisted tale of betrayal and deceit that we gain our knowledge of mankind?s free will, and God?s intentions regarding this human capacity. There is one school of thought which believes that life is mapped out with no regard for individual choice while contrary belief tells us that mankind is capable of free will and therefore has control over hisown life and the consequences of his actions. The story of Adam and Eve and the time they spent in ?paradise? again and again points to the latter as the truth. Confirming that God not only gave mankind the ability to think for himself but also the skills needed to take responsibility for those thoughts and the actions that they produced.
If he was going to be executed because of his faith in God, and God was an all-knowing God, why was God allowing the king to execute him? Through his philosophical point of view, Boethius was able to answer his own question. In Christianity, followers believe that God knows what they are going to say and what is going to happen even before it is said and/or done. Instead of looking at a problem through a human point, Boethius recommended looking at it from God’s perspective. Because God lives in eternity, the eternal moment for God is now, therefore, in sense, God cannot “foresee” ones future.
Introduction Throughout antiquity there have been countless arguments over the topic of predestination: Are people's decisions determined by their understanding of good and evil? Can a person, regardless of forces external to them, choose some of their actions, or is every person’s life predestined? There have been numerous definitions and arguments over the term predestination. The main grievance with the term is over humanities free will—How much of what a human does is in their will, and what part of salvation do they take (if any). Though this essay will take an approach by using various scriptures and thoughts from respectable theologians, the main focus will be on the following verses:
He deems that although fortune determines much of one’s life, “she never associates with good men and does not turn into good men those with whom she associates” (Boethius 40). From this quote, one can determine that fortune is also interwoven into the backstory of an individual’s fame because fortune favors those who are not necessarily good people. Comparatively, Boethius continues his discussion of fortune following his conversation about fate. It is interesting to observe how Boethius’ opinion on fortune changes after exploring the influences concerning fame. He expounds upon his original interpretation of fame by stating that “bad fortune is more useful than good fortune,” as bad fortune is always truthful and people can learn from its teachings (Boethius 44).
Happiness is an inner state of well-being and fulfilment, and therefore it has to come from inside. Every individual has his or her own emotions and way of thinking and as a result of this no one can really say what happiness is and what happiness is not. However, universally, happiness is a by-product of a healthy attitude and viewpoint. Happiness exists in everyone whether they choose to acknowledge and believe it or not. It is not rare nor is it something only the elite have: everyone has it but not everyone recognizes it. Contentment is finding a light at the end of every dark tunnel and in order to experience this we must ignore the pessimism surrounding us and remind ourselves that happiness is not a materialistic object but a choice and frame of mind.
According to the Webster dictionary, the word happiness is defined as enjoying, showing, or marked by pleasure, satisfaction, or joy. When people think of happiness, they think about having a good feeling inside. There are many types of happiness, which are expressed in many ways. Happiness is something that you can't just get; it comes from your soul. Happiness can be changed through many things that happen in our everyday lives.
What does it mean to be happy? Happiness is a sensation that people want to have, and a lot of it. Above all else in the world, it’s what we seek and long for. Though this feeling can be found in many different places and at many different times, it isn’t easy to acquire. For some people, happiness might be found in exercise and sustaining good health. On the other hand, others can discover it when they go on vacation and relax. The idea here is that we each have our own things that make us happy.
But in this debate, one question still raises its head - What is happiness? Happiness is not actually leading a luxurious life, but the luxury of living a life. Happiness is not actually about expanding your business, but it lies in expanding the horizons of life. Happiness is not having a meal in the most famous restaurant, but having it with your most beloved family. It does not lie in attending honorable parties, but to attend a party with honor.
Happiness is a state of mind. The dictionary definition is "feelings of joy and pleasure mingled together”. A feeling of happiness is more than just an experience of joy or pleasure. It is a state of mind where the individual feels that “life is good”. As Aristotle says, “happiness is the meaning and the purpose of life, the whole aim and end of human existence.” I believe that everyone wants to be happy in life. One is abnormal if he prefers to be sad and alone.
Happiness is a feeling that cannot be broken if strong enough, no matter how much sadness or hate is around you. Happiness can come from the smallest thing, for instance, music makes me happy and can easily change my mood, or when I am doing something I love my mood is easily changed. For others it could be whenever you do something well, or right and get recognition for it. It is the easiest feeling to be spread and given out but often neglected and forgotten about which is something we should all be more aware