Letters of Abelard and Heloise
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| - | :"[Philintus] bribed my servants; an assassin came into my bedchamber by night, with a razor in his hand, and found me in a deep sleep. I suffered the most shameful punishment that the revenge of an enemy could invent; in short, without losing my life, I lost my [[manhood]]. So cruel an action escaped not justice, the villain suffered the same mutilation, poor comfort for so irretrievable an evil. I confess to you that shame more than any sincere penitence made me resolve to hide myself from the sight of men, yet could I not separate myself from my Heloise."[http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Letters_of_Ab%C3%A9lard_and_H%C3%A9lo%C3%AFse/Letter_1] in a translation/edition by [[John Hughes (poet)|John Hughes]] | + | :"[Fulbert] bribed my servants; an assassin came into my bedchamber by night, with a razor in his hand, and found me in a deep sleep. I suffered the most shameful punishment that the revenge of an enemy could invent; in short, without losing my life, I lost my [[manhood]]. So cruel an action escaped not justice, the villain suffered the same mutilation, poor comfort for so irretrievable an evil. I confess to you that shame more than any sincere penitence made me resolve to hide myself from the sight of men, yet could I not separate myself from my Heloise."[http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Letters_of_Ab%C3%A9lard_and_H%C3%A9lo%C3%AFse/Letter_1] in a translation/edition by [[John Hughes (poet)|John Hughes]] |
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| - | :"[Philintus] bribed my servants; an assassin came into my bedchamber by night, with a razor in his hand, and found me in a deep sleep. I suffered the most shameful punishment that the revenge of an enemy could invent; in short, without losing my life, I lost my manhood. So cruel an action escaped not justice, the villain suffered the same mutilation, poor comfort for so irretrievable an evil. I confess to you that shame more than any sincere penitence made me resolve to hide myself from the sight of men, yet could I not separate myself from my Heloise." --[[The Love Letters of Abelard and Heloise Trans. by Anonymous, edited by Israel Gollancz and Honnor Morten]] | + | |
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| == Publication history == | == Publication history == | ||
| The original Latin text was published in Paris in [[1616]], but it was only after the publication of a French translation of the correspondence in [[1693]] that these letters began to attract wide public attention. | The original Latin text was published in Paris in [[1616]], but it was only after the publication of a French translation of the correspondence in [[1693]] that these letters began to attract wide public attention. | ||
Revision as of 11:57, 19 February 2012
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The Letters of Heloise and Abelard is a series of letters between French priest Peter Abelard and his female student Héloïse d’Argenteuil after their his castration and their separation. These letters were also the inspiration for Alexander Pope's poem "Eloisa to Abelard".
These letters are only known by posthumous copies which makes it impossible to ascertain their authenticity, no original copies of these letters exist. Yet even if other authors have been attributed to the letters, the name of Jean de Meung has cropped up, the letters' authenticity remain the most probable thesis.
The story of Heloise and Abelard is one of an illicit love of Heloise for, and secret marriage to, her teacher Pierre Abélard, and the brutal vengeance her family exacts when they castrate him, not realizing that the lovers had married.
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Castration episode
- "[Fulbert] bribed my servants; an assassin came into my bedchamber by night, with a razor in his hand, and found me in a deep sleep. I suffered the most shameful punishment that the revenge of an enemy could invent; in short, without losing my life, I lost my manhood. So cruel an action escaped not justice, the villain suffered the same mutilation, poor comfort for so irretrievable an evil. I confess to you that shame more than any sincere penitence made me resolve to hide myself from the sight of men, yet could I not separate myself from my Heloise."[1] in a translation/edition by John Hughes
Publication history
The original Latin text was published in Paris in 1616, but it was only after the publication of a French translation of the correspondence in 1693 that these letters began to attract wide public attention.
John Hughes (c. 1678-1720) was not a great poet, but his translation of the Letters of Abelard and Heloise, preceded by a summary of their lives by Pierre Bayle (first published in 1713), was of enormous popularity throughout the eighteenth century.
Cultural references
Literary
The Mark Twain book, The Innocents Abroad tells a satirical version of the story of Abélard and Héloïse.
In the novel The Romantic by Barbara Gowdy the two central characters take their names from Héloïse and Abélard (Louise and Abélard in the novel).
Julie, or the New Heloise by Jean-Jacques Rousseau is a reference to the illicit love affair between Abelard and Heloise.
Poetry
François Villon's Ballade des Dames du Temps Jadis ("Ballad of the Ladies of Times Past") mentions Héloïse and Abélard in the second stanza.
Their story inspired the poem "The Convent Threshold" by the Victorian English poet Christina Rossetti, as well as the poem "Eloisa to Abelard" by the English poet Alexander Pope.
Stage and film
Howard Brenton's play In Extremis: The Story of Abelard and Heloise premiered at Shakespeare's Globe in Template:As of.
The film Stealing Heaven (1988) chronicles their story and stars Derek de Lint, Kim Thomson, and Denholm Elliott.
In the film Being John Malkovich, the character Craig Schwartz, a failed puppeteer, stages a sidewalk puppet show depicting correspondence between Héloïse and Abélard.
Director and writer Norman Szabo created an animated feature called William Shakespeare's Abelard + Heloise.
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind makes several references to the story of Abelard and Heloise in both script and plot.
Music
The song Heloise by Frank Black from the Devil's Workshop album refers to this story.
The Lady Who Sailed the Soul by Cordwainer Smith refers to the lovers.
The song Nora by Richard Shindell features a verse about Heloise and Abelard.
The Cole Porter song Just One of Those Things alludes to this story.
The two protagonists in spanish singer-songwriter Joaquín Sabina's song, Pájaros de Portugal, are named Abelardo and Eloísa (Abelard and Heloise in spanish)
The song "Abelard and Heloise" features on Seventh Angel's latest album The Dust of Years. The lyrics are based on the couple's famous correspondence.
Other
The French luxury fashion brand Chloé has a bag named in her honor, the Héloïse.
See also
