HELOISE

Heloise had come to Paris from the royal convent of Saint Marie in Argen-teuil, where she had been raised, about six miles northwest of Paris. In Paris, she lived under the guardianship of her maternal uncle Fulbert—a canon of Notre Dame, as Abelard newly was. Little is known about her birth family, although she wrote in her letters that she was of low social standing. Yet, when a girl entered a convent such as the one at Argenteuil, a sizable dowry was usually paid, which would have excluded most girls of modest means. Rather than being from a family of humble standing, it seems more probable that Heloise was of illegitimate birth. In the necrology of the convent of the Paraclete, where Heloise died, her mother’s name is recorded as Hersindis, but her father’s name is not noted, although he may have been from the Montmorency or the Beaufort family. Heloise was probably born around 1090, in which case she would have been about 11 years younger than Abelard was. Heloise came to Paris around the same time that Abelard became a canon and head of the school at Notre Dame; she may have been drawn to Paris and the household of her uncle by Abelard’s reputation, which was quite far-reaching. Living with her uncle within the cathedral cloister would have put her in close proximity to an important intellectual center and to one of the most illustrious masters of the day. Although it was quite uncommon for women to be educated at all, Fulbert intended to continue her education in Paris and Heloise acquired a reputation for her extensive knowledge of Latin, Greek, and Hebrew. Abelard calls her nominatissima, “the most renowned,” for her exceptional abilities in reading and writing.

In his Historia, Abelard acknowledges that his pride and overconfidence caused him to give in to his physical desire for Heloise. Events leading up to his success in Paris suggest that Abelard flourished in times of crisis and, at least for the moment, he had vanquished his rivals, and his students followed him with enthusiastic devotion. Perhaps he longed for the stimulation of an adversarial challenge. Whatever the case, Fulbert was anxious to give his niece access to the best teacher available, and so he agreed to allow Abelard to reside in his house and to tutor Heloise. Never lacking in self-confidence, Abelard makes it clear he resided in Fulbert’s house fully intending to seduce Heloise, who, he was certain, would find his intellect and physical attractiveness irresistible.