ABSTRACT
In the Consolation of Philosophy, Orpheus figures as one who failed to escape the clutches of Hell; Philosophy's focus is not on his supposed invention of pederasty, but on the lack of moral discipline that caused him to look back in desire. His motivations in seeking Eurydice were impure. From the moralizing perspective of Philosophy, Orpheus never does leave the domain of Hell, even if he technically climbs back out onto the surface of the earth. Although Orpheus was a consummate master of poetry, his medium was song, and he had the power to rearrange entire landscapes simply by singing; he was indeed neither writer nor ploughman. Though the Lover never mentions Orpheus by name, his disinterest in an intellectual 'ascent' and his unbending commitment to Cupid associate him with the Boethian reading of Orpheus's failed quest.
