The Letters of Abelard and Heloise (Penguin Classics) [Paperback]

Peter Abelard (Author), Heloise (Author), Michael Clanchy (Editor, Contributor), Betty Radice (Translator)

Book Description

Series: Penguin Classics | Publication Date: April 27, 2004

The story of Abelard and Heloise remains one of the world’s most dramatic and well-known love affairs. It is told through the letters of French philosopher Peter Abelard and his gifted pupil Heloise. Through their impassioned writings unfolds the story of a romance, from its reckless, ecstatic beginnings to the public scandal, enforced secret marriage, and devastating consequences that followed. These eloquent and intimate letters express a vast range of emotions from adoration and devotion to reproach, indignation, and grief, and offer a fascinating insight into religious life in the Middle Ages.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Abelard and Heloise are nearly as famous a pair of tragic lovers as the fictional Romeo and Juliet; their shared passion for knowledge, religious faith, and one another sealed their destiny. Abelard was a well-respected, 12th-century Parisian scholar and teacher, and Heloise was his talented young student. The two relate their story through a set of letters to one another and intimate acquaintances. Their ardor is unmistakable; as Abelard writes to his love, "So intense were the fires of lust which bound me to you that I set those wretched, obscene pleasures, which we blush even to name, above God as above myself..." This forbidden lust resulted in a pregnancy and secret marriage, and when their union could no longer withstand the challenges in its path, each lover sought refuge in the church--Abelard became a monk and Heloise an abbess. Their correspondence continued as both achieved success in their new careers but continued to struggle with their feelings for one another; the set of letters powerfully articulates the wide range of emotions they experienced. So timeless is their love story that--after eight centuries--their passion, their devotion, and their struggle still resonate with readers. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Language Notes

Text: English (translation)
Original Language: Latin --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Penguin Books; Revised edition (April 27, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140448993
• ISBN-13: 978-0140448993
• Product Dimensions: 5.1 x 1 x 7.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #10,850 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #5 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Letters & Correspondence
  • #13 in Books > Religion & Spirituality > Religious Studies > History
  • #18 in Books > Education & Reference > Foreign Language Nonfiction > French

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

36 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Extraordinary love story, beautiful writing, June 19, 2002

By 

m-starr (Washington D.C. area) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Letters of Abelard and Heloise (Penguin Classics) (Paperback)

By any standard, the tale of Heloise and Abelard is an extraordinary story => brilliant young philosopher seduces brilliant beautiful student, passionate affair ensues, she gets pregnant, and they secretly marry -- but her relatives feel he has wronged her terribly, and in the middle of the night they break in and castrate him, after which both take refuge in the church. This book begins with a well-written introduction by Betty Radice, which gives an overview of the story. The letters, written years after the affair, are of great eloquence and depth of thought and feeling. Through them, the couple works to transform their 'earthly love'(which had continued to burn in Heloise's heart) into a spiritual bond that turns out to have similarly great passion and transcendence. Although the letters are steeped in religious debates and intrigues of the time, their beauty makes the love behind them seem as alive today as it was so many centuries ago ...

60 of 69 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Everlasting Love!, October 24, 2002

By 

Z. Yang (Hockessin, DE USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Letters of Abelard and Heloise (Penguin Classics) (Paperback)

When a subject is as ineffably touching as the love story of Abelard and Heloise, it'll drive you continuously to dig more and deeper into the story. So after the novel "Stealing Heaven" by Marion Meade, the film based on the novel entitled with the same name, as well as the poignant musical "Rage Of The Heart" by Enrico Garzilli, in which Peter Abelard was sung by Michael Ball and Heloise by Janet Mooney, I read the book "The Letter Of Peter Abelard And Heloise". If all of the previous works I have encountered are artworks carrying more or less the creators' imaginations as well as their biases, then this book of letters, not only a true documentation of these two extraordinary human minds, but also a true portrayal of these two extraordinary human souls, provides the resources where you could reach the truth and make the judgment of your own.

Peter Abelard is a far more complicated human being than any artwork could deal. This is a man who was blessed with talent that's so distinctive, born with the charisma that's so appealing, and yet, tormented by the tragedy that's most appalling. The letters included reveal the connections of Abelard and Heloise years after both of them took vow to monastery life. You'd feel that the tragic consequence of their love relationship had created a different Abelard, from whom the words were more focused on his devotion to God and his advice to Heloise on the same subject, also his keenness on his study, and his somewhat apathy towards their previous relationship, for which it could be easily mistaken as selfishness or indifference. But it'd be very unfair to blame Abelard for negligence. If we are able to see that this is a man who had suffered unimaginable infliction and unbearable humiliation, for which he himself believed to be the punishment for his sin, it becomes all so understandable of his words of remorse and his dedication. I believe that after the tragedy, he tried to hide his pain and forget the past in order to re-live his life. After all, he had paid the highest price for his love to Heloise. However, despite all these, his deep love and emotions towards Heloise could not be concealed but be felt between the lines written to her and from the Historia calamitatum: The Story of His Misfortunes, written by Abelard to a friend. Although their love that once reached its peak was forced to come to an end so suddenly, later on through letters it had been restored in an unusual spiritual way and on a new level of depth.

Heloise, an equally extraordinary human being as Abelard, on the other hand, was simpler and more straightforward, and yet, with a mind that's almost as acute and a heart that's braver and more passionate. When disaster struck upon these two lovers, she took the veil and entered the abbey in obedience to his wishes, only for her love to Abelard. Her sentimentality could be fully felt from her emotional outpouring of tears, grieves, and longings in the letters. The walls of Abbey never stopped her from loving Abelard, to whom the love she confessed and never denied to be beyond her love to God. Her perspective about true love is most incisive. Her talking about sensuality of flesh is very frank. When responding to Abelard on the subject of virtue and chastity, her strong arguments and copious quotations from various resources are simply brilliant. This is a woman, with exceptional beauty both inside and outside as well as the most admiring courage, who cannot be judged conventionally.

The text translation is eloquent, literary, and beautiful. These letters, once were written many centuries ago and once were the only connection between two passionate hearts, are still compelling to read nowadays. In their own words, they told the story, in which they were teacher and student; friend and lover; husband and wife; brother and sister; and ultimately, two inseparable souls.

24 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Tragic Story, January 5, 2006

By 

D. Campbell "music lover" (Murrysville, PA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Letters of Abelard and Heloise (Penguin Classics) (Paperback)

I have been fascinated by the story of Heloise and Abelard ever since reading the book Stealing Heaven in 1979. Reading theses Letters was heartbreaking to me. This is my take on the whole thing: obviously Peter and Heloise had a deeply passionate sexual relationship. For Heloise, this grew also into an affair of the heart. For both of them it was an affair of the mind. What could be more enticing to a man than a woman of Heloise's intellect and passion? However, it was also the Middle Ages. Heloise was from a prominant family with an uncle high in the Church heirarchy. She loved Peter, as women do, with body, mind and soul. I believe he loved her deeply, but it is different with men. And as long as he was a whole man, I believe he acted honorably. But there is no way around it: her pregnancy was a disaster. What were they to do, what could they do? It is not as if he and she could live together married happily ever after. He faced ruin when she became pregnant: everything he was was put at great risk--his life's work was at stake, his standing in society, his reputation, his position at his University. They marry in secret, she hides away in a convent waiting to be rescued and carried off by her husband to a life of what? She doesn't care--she only wants to be with the man she loves. But what about him? How does he see this future? I feel sorry for the guy. But all this is moot, because her uncle has him castrated. At that point, he changes. No one seems to be acknowledging the effect this would have on him. The most importand underpinning of his feeling for Heloise, i.e., testosterone-induced lust, is suddenly gone. Then add in the humiliation, pain, etc., etc. There you have it. His only option was the Church. Her only option was the Church. But how very differently they embarked upon that life. To him it is a welcome refuge. He can continue to live his life of the mind in that setting. He is surrounded by other celibate men. He has no sexual feelings anymore. He is a different person. Whatever feeling he had for Heloise is cut from him. Indeed, he sees the whole thing as sinful, dirty, to be repented of. She, on the other hand, is in an entirely different situation. Religious life for her is not a refuge, but a prison. She has no access to her child. She has lost her love and lover, against her will. Not only are they separated, but the man she loves no longer loves her. It would have been better for her had he died. But to read his letters to her, wherein he totally rejects and condemns and regrets what she treasures most in her life and scolds her for not doing the same is heartbreaking. The letters make perfect sense to me. She was tormented by her love for him till old age cooled her ardor. She set her considerable mind at work on managing her religious order, but it was second-best, by far, till she was older. Since she adored him all her life, she engaged with him in the only manner he would allow: letters regarding religion and the religious life. I don't know how she bore it for all those years. No doubt about it: the uncle is the villian. Both Heloise and Peter suffered greatly: she had her heart torn from her, and he had his manhood torn from him.