Eloisa to Abelard

The love affair of Heloïse d’Argenteuil and Peter Abelard is one of the most famous stories of star-crossed lovers since medieval times. Pope references many factual elements of the affair in creating his “letter” from Eloisa to Abelard. In 12th-century Paris, Peter Abelard was one of the most brilliant philosophers and theologians of his time. He became acquainted with Canon Fulbert, a member of the clergy at Notre Dame cathedral in Paris. Abelard saw Fulbert’s niece, Heloïse and quickly fell in love. Heloïse was a gifted a pupil, renowned as one of the most brilliant young women in France. Abelard managed to secure a position tutoring Heloïse in exchange for a room in Canon Fulbert’s home, where Heloïse lived. The intellectual match between Abelard and Heloïse played a strong role in the relationship. However, the relationship between Abelard, who was 38 years old at the time, and Heloïse, who was only 18, would have been viewed as a scandal in their community because of the strict religious rules of the time and culture, so they begin a clandestine relationship hidden from Heloïse’s family. Heloïse became pregnant with Abelard’s child, and in a bid to protect Heloïse from scorn and public humiliation in their strictly religious community, they quickly married, with her uncle, Canon Fulbert, officiating the secret ceremony.