Peter Abelard (1079–1142)

Like watching video of a wreck, in slow motion, played over and over again. The greatest misfortune of the logician and theologian, Pierre Abelard, was his compulsion to humiliate the rich and powerful, despite the severe penalties for doing so in 12th Century France.

Sadly, the legend of his love for Heloise also suffers in his retelling. He seems more concerned with his reputation than her welfare. Would've been better for his reputation if he'd never written this short memoir.

A fascinating insight into Medieval life, "The Letters" are the real-life correspondences between Peter Abelard, an arrogant (and apparently handsome) monk and writer, and the beautiful young lady, Heloise, whom he seduced. Her subsequent pregnancy caused a scandal for them both, leading to her becoming the Abbess of a convent.

In truth, the story of these people is more interesting than the letters. Heloise is the more fascinating, as she clearly still has feelings, yet has begun to show more question the wisdom of their relationship, and whether Abelard ever cared for her. Abelard, meanwhile, disguises his arrogance and lack of forethought in his writing, but it's there clearly. Things become interesting as a paranoia evolves around him, although his writing suggests that he is clearly either delusional or, more likely, attention-seeking.

Despite the fascinating story - which is chronicled in detail in the introduction - the letters are more about religion than love, which is understandable due to the time. What makes them a worthy read is just as often the insight into the lives of these people. If you're looking for powerful letters of two star-crossed lovers, you're in the wrong place. I'll admit I was a little disappointed by this. Yet, I'm still happy to have read the letters, if only because - despite the trappings and religion orientation of those involved - many of the feelings and thoughts echo down the centuries, so familiarly.

The translation is very strong, as is the depth of the notes and introduction. Wonderfully, the intro even investigates the possibility that the letters were faked. The most likely option is that they are real, but some academics have suspected that Abelard may have written all the letters - either to better create Heloise's real thoughts, or as a kind of Ancient Greek philosophy exercise.

The appendices include a series of much more powerful letters, from around the same time, written between two unknown lovers. The book suggests that they may be the "lost love letters", although there is no real reason to assume this, but these letters are actually a really affecting read. show less

Ah, Peter Abelard. The only person in history to have become more of a dick because he lost his dick. (Though something tells me he was a pretty narcissistic jackass even before then.) As aware as I am that these letters are a wonderful historical source, rereading them only fills me with the urge to go back in time and punch Abelard in the neck. And then to take Heloise to one side, explain the concept of 'internalised misogyny' to her, fix her a strong drink and then talk her through why show more emotional abusers are bad for you. (Seriously, reading through these letters for the first time since the Twilight craze hit? Inspired some comparisons between Abelard and Edward Cullen.) show less

Hade en rätt idealiserad bild av deras kärleksrelation innan jag läste denna bok. Héloïses är fyllda av längtan och självuppoffrande för Abélards skull, men Abélard är betydligt mer distanserad och menar att han innan han kastrerades drevs av åtrå snarare än kärlek till Héloïse. Så relationen är betydligt mer ensidig än vad jag hade fått för mig. Boken är läsvärd för Héloïses brev som är en vacker bild av en kärlek av både åtrå, djup och till viss del, show more överraskande sett till tiden och hennes roll som nunna, i uppror mot Gud. Abélards brev är betydligt längre, torra, avfärdande och förmanande. show less