Abelard

Peter Abelard, the French scholastic and proponent of Conceptualism, was born in Brittany in 1079. His father was  of the lesser nobility and encouraged his son, who was very bright, in his studies. Abelard excelled in dialectical philosophy, and became so skilled in logic and debate that he even exceeded the skills of his master at the Notre-Dame de Paris cathedral school. As a very young man, Abelard (he took the name 'Abelard', after being merely 'Peter le Pallet' after his hometown) gained celebrity status for his success as a teacher, lecturer, and sophisticate, bringing in a following of students from many countries. By 1115, Abelard had further bolstered his image with continued debate and ventures into theology, and even was given the chair at the Notre-Dame school.

At this time Abelard became the private tutor of Heloise, the lovely and brilliant niece of a canon of the Church. They quickly became lovers, much to the chagrin of her uncle, who separated them when he found out. They continued to meet anyways, and when Heloise became pregnant, Abelard sent her to a convent in Brittany, where she bore their son. They were married after the birth, but Heloise's uncle, knowing nothing of the marriage, believed Abelard was sending her away for good. In anger he had Abelard castrated, and forced his niece unwillingly into monastic life.

Following these bitter events, Abelard himself became a monk, seeking any consolation for his despair. He began studying again, and gradually regained some of his former popularity as a teacher. However, his endeavors were again disappointed when he was forced to burn some of his theological writings at the charge of heresy. Full of bitterness, he tormented the monks at his monestary, eventually seeking the hermit's life in the wilderness. As students continued to surround him, he founded the Oratory of the Paraclete, which renewed in him some joy. After the school broke up, he struggled in the wilderness for another decade.

In a happier change of circumstances, Abelard was reunited with Heloise, who had gained renown as a strong and respectable spiritual figure. He started a religious community in his old school of the Paraclete, of which he made her the head. During this time Abelard wrote many theological and philosophical works, which inspired correspondence between himself and Heloise. These letters have become one of the most famous examples of the tragic love story in history.

The end of Abelard's life was marked by theological debate with Bernard of Clairvaux, who constantly battled Abelard's rational approach to Christianity and questioning of tradition. Bernard pleaded for a condemnation of Abelard as a heretic. Before he could arrive in Rome to plea his own case, Abelard died in the priory of St. Michel, where his friends had urged him to stay and take respite from his grief. He died in 1142. Shortly afterward his remains were given to Heloise at the Paraclete.

Aside from his acumen as a philosopher, Abelard was also an accomplished poet and musician, and true 'liberal artist'.

Writings of Abelard:

Logic for Beginners (c. 1121)
Sic et Non (Yes and No)
The Glosses of Peter Abelard on Porphyry (c. 1120)
Dialectica (before 1125)
At treatise on understanding (before 1128)
Theologica 'Summi Boni' ( between 1120-1140)
Ethics, or Know Yourself (before 1140)
Historia calamitatum (autobiography, 'the history of my calamities)
Abelard and Heloise: The Letters and other writings (William Levitan, 2007)