Boethius's influence in the Middle Ages was immense. Only Aristotle and
Augustine had so great a direct influence over so wide a range of intellec-
tual life. And because Boethius does not seem even to his warmest admirers
to be on a level with two such giants of thought, there has been an inclina-
tion among scholars to allow this illustrious Nachleben to overshadow his
own achievements rather than to vindicate them. One goal of this book is to
correct that tendency. Medieval scholars turned again and again to the
Opuscula sacra and the Consolation because they are complex, difficult and
remarkable works; even the medieval enthusiasm for Boethius's logic, at least
until about 1200, was not merely—although it clearly was in part—due to
the unavailability of other sources. The present chapter is brief so as not to
unbalance a study designed to focus on Boethius himself. It aims to indicate
the main aspects of Boethius's medieval influence and to suggest how it re-
flects Boethius's individuality as a writer and thinker, as well as his role as a
transmitter of ancient thought. I shall not consider the Arithmetic or the
Principles of Music, although both works were widely read from the ninth
century right through to the Renaissance, remaining a part of the syllabus
in arithmetic and music despite the influx of new texts. ¹ Rather, I shall look
at the influence of the logical translations and commentaries; the logical text-
books; the opuscula sacra; and the different facets of the reception and use of
the Consolation—the tradition of translation and commentary, the philo-

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