Peter Abelard - Philosopher and Teacher

Peter Abelard was also known as: Pierre Abà ©lard; also spelled Abeillard, Abailard, Abaelardus, and Abelardus, among other variations Peter Abelard was known for: his significant contributions to Scholasticism, his great ability as a teacher and writer, and his infamous love affair with his student, Heloise. Occupations: MonasticPhilosopher TheologianTeacherWriter Places of Residence and Influence: France Important Dates: Died: April 21, 1142 Quotation from Peter Abelard: This first key of wisdom is defined, of course, as assiduous or frequent questioning.---- Sic et Non, translated by W. J. Lewis More Quotations by Peter Abelard About Peter Abelard: Abelard was the son of a knight, and he gave up his inheritance to study philosophy, particularly logic; he would become renowned for his brilliant use of dialectics. He attended many different schools seeking knowledge from a variety of teachers, and often came into conflict with them because he was so headstrong and certain of his own brilliance. (The fact that he really was brilliant didnt help matters.) By 1114 Peter Abelard was teaching in Paris, where he met and tutored Heloise and became a notable figure of the twelfth-century Renaissance. As a philosopher, Peter Abelard is well-remembered for his solution to the problem of universals (definitive qualities of any given class of things): he maintained that language itself cannot determine the reality of things, but that physics must do so. He also wrote poetry, which was very well received, and established several schools. In addition to these scholarly efforts, Abelard wrote a letter to a friend, which has come down to us as the Historia Calamitatum (Story of My Misfortunes). Together with letters written to him by Heloise, it provides a great deal of information about Abelards personal life. Peter Abelards affair with Heloise (whom he had married) came to an abrupt end when her uncle, wrongly believing Abelard was forcing her to become a nun, sent thugs to his house to castrate him. The scholar hid his shame by becoming a monk, and his philosophical focus shifted from logic to theology. Abelards subsequent career was extremely rocky; he was even condemned as a heretic at one point, and the work the Church deemed heretical was burned. Because Abelard was so cocksure, applied logic so ruthlessly to matters of faith, criticized anything he found worthy of contempt and frequently insulted fellow clerics, he was not well-loved by his contemporaries. However, even his harshest critics had to concede that Peter Abelard was one of the greatest thinkers and teachers of his time. For more about Peter Abelard, his relationship with Heloise, and the events that followed, visit  A Medieval Love Story. More Peter Abelard Resources: A Medieval Love StoryOnline Text of Abelards Historia CalamitatumQuotations by Peter AbelardAbelard and Heloise Picture GalleryPeter Abelard on the WebAbelard Heloise on FilmThe link below will take you to an online store, where you can find more information about the film. This is provided as a convenience to you; neither Melissa Snell nor About is responsible for any purchases you make through this link. Stealing HeavenBased on the fictional novel by Marion Meade, this 1989 film was directed by Clive Donner and stars Derek de Lint and Kim Thomson. The text of this document is copyright  ©2000-2015 Melissa Snell. You may download or print this document for personal or school use, as long as the URL below is included. Permission is not granted  to reproduce this document on another website. For publication permission,  please  contact  Melissa Snell. The URL for this document is:http://historymedren.about.com/od/awho/p/who_abelard.htm