The goal and thus the effectiveness of the writings by educated Dhuoda in the handbook to
her son William and the letters between Peter Abelard and Heloise, are affected by the type of
love shared with their intended receiver, whether maternal or marital. The religious piety of
these three individuals in combination with distinguishing factors, most notably teacher/pupil
status but also gender and age, causes differences in how they write as well as heavily influences
how they view their relationships with others and how they are to be conducted.
Dhuoda obviously obtains her status as a teacher by the nature of being a mother, but by
being physically separated from William, she is forced into the role as an instructor by
circumstance as well. The distance between the two causes Dhuoda to write her book in an
urgent manner which, while explicitly addressed to William, she does for herself to relieve some
of the anxiety she feels, having not be able to raise William herself and personally instill values,
a defining feature of parenting. Parental nature dictates that parents wish their children to
experience full, happy lives, but given William’s hostage situation, Dhuoda’s main priority falls
to his survival, which includes physical well-being but focuses more importantly on his spiritual
salvation. She displays this maternal concern through the topic of the two deaths, the first being
physical and the second as that of the soul (Dhuoda 80). By deemphasizing pain and death of the
physical body, she stresses the greater importance of spiritual survival, seen by her citing the
Psalmist who says, “No man can escape the first […] But a man can escape the second death, if
he wishes and if he has struggled worthily” (Dhuoda 80). This is reinforced by her earlier call in
Book Five to endure not only physical suffering such as illness but moreover spiritual sorrows
borne in the name of the Lord which will be rewarded with the gift of heaven and eternal life
(Dhuoda 65).
In his first letter to a friend, Peter Abelard describes how he confidently seeks out and wins
the affections of Heloise; but as their initial affections develop, he fails to fulfill his expected role
as her tutor, the premise under which they initially grew closer, as he seems to be teaching her
more in the art of passion than those of the books. His efforts as an actual instructor to his
students and his studies in philosophy and theology dwindled as their relationship progresses
(A&H 11). Through later letters between Peter and Heloise, Peter actually adopts the voice of an
instructor, using phrases like “listen to me more attentively” which can be seen as a marker of
change within their relationship, from lovers back to teacher/student which ironically is what he
initially claimed to be to her (A&H 72). His goal is then to discuss God’s grace upon them
despite their “shameful behavior…previous fornication, and the wanton impurities” which he
admits they are both guilty of, but they should be grateful God did not inflict a harsher
punishment than his castration (A&H 79). Heloise’s acceptance of her inferior role could
possibly be linked to the natural hierarchy of age but also her position as the student of Peter,
who is meant to as an educational instructor but who also serves to teach her in love. This
submissive position may contribute to her later tendency to remain willing to grieve the
conditions of Peter’s life on his behalf, to fixate on his lustful actions rather than pursuing the
pious life of a nun he wants for her, and refusal to see him as the devout, monastic individual he
claims and demonstrates he has become.
Her role as a woman and mother, and absence of her husband, drives Dhuoda to fulfill
both parental roles by establishing familial principles, such as honoring his father Bernard in
Book Three, which Bernard would otherwise demand through teaching if he was there. She
must teach her son religiosity but also reinforce the social and cultural norms of their time, such
as paying respect to the hierarchy of authorities in Book Eight, such as of God, the clergy, and
again Bernard. Dhuoda, living in a patriarchal society, furthers and displays the increasingly
strict ideals of religious adherence that were characteristic of the Carolingian dynasty by her
reliance on citing used sources which without would deem her not credible. She demonstrates
her credibility as an author and female scholar by constantly quoting and referring to a wide
variety of intellectuals of her time in addition to secular and biblical sources. It is also worth
noting that her status as a woman is reinforced by her calling William to pray for and respect the
high-ranking figures many of whom were religious and explicitly addressed with male terms
such as “clergy, bishops and priests, your own lord, your father, kings” with no mentioning of
the queens, wives, or daughters of these figures whose positions were and still remain to be
largely male-dominated in terms of profession (Dhuoda 84).
Despite their common feature of womanhood, Heloise does not write in the informative
voice of Dhuoda who although sometimes denied her own self-value, referring to herself as
“unworthy and frail” (Dhouda 8), was still confident in her religious and life sources. Instead
she is much more emotional and seemingly desperate at times, and surprisingly does not seem to
adhere firmly to Christian beliefs despite her background of being well-studied and thus
presumably somewhat versed in religion and even as part of an abbey, which leads her to
continue to rely on the affections of Peter. She is inhibited from piety by her and Abelard’s
previous sexual encounters and the “lewd visions of those pleasures” which overtake her mind
“even during the celebration of the Mass” (A&H 68). He sternly reprimands these word and
literally tells her to “seek piety” (A&H 79) through adopting the appropriate behavior of a nun,
one of the most recognized, distinct female roles in religion, a role which Peter says to her “you
disguised yourself in the sacred habit of a nun, a pretence which was an irreverent mockery of
the religion you now profess” (A&H 80). Perhaps his identity as a well-educated, renowned
scholar and teacher of his time contributes to Peter’s arrogance, a trait greatly regarded as more
common among males. His first letter, intended for a friend but presumed to be read by others
en route, is dedicated entirely to detailing his own personal woes of misery, essentially a display
of egotism. Peter’s status as a male may also have enabled him to more easily earn the
profession and fame as a scholar. He may feel entitled as a male in the patriarchal society to a
certain level of respect and amorous relations, which may have led him to essentially take
advantage of the naivety of young Heloise.
-Evidence 1: Maybe Book 8 again? Or book 3, revere your father
-Evidence 2: letter 2, constantly refers to her beloved; letter 4 laments woes of Peter on his
behalf, pg 35 full of himself 10
Although disputed, the relative closeness in age of Peter and Heloise allows them to
connect on a closer level and discuss personal issues versus Dhuoda who must maintain a certain
level of authority over and distance from William. The crisis of political instability and threat to
William’s life causes Dhuoda to inherit a tone of urgency. Dhuoda urges William to seek out the
elders and learn their wisdom, so it is presumed that wisdom may come with age. Thus,
Dhuoda’s authority is also assumed to come from her being older and wiser. Her
acknowledgement of her son’s age comes in Book Nine when she says, “but my loving intent
here has been to refashion their content in a manner appropriate to your age. You may thus be
led up to the height of perfection in fifteen steps” which doubly serves as her reference back to
religiosity and following the seven gifts and eight beatitudes in this medieval how-to guide
(Dhuoda 91).
Although the actual difference in age remains the same, the relationship between Peter
and Heloise changes not only as a result in their levels of piety but also the fundamentals of the
younger and older ages become more evident. Heloise’s young age, which contributes both to
her immaturity and her inexperience in love, may be rooted at the reason she seems to cling to
her first love Peter, despite his blatant claims that he never loved her and has since adopted the
monastic life and who, given his castration, seeks no further relationship other than that in Christ.
Initially, Peter’s older age compared to Heloise may have given him the false idea that he
deserves to become her older tutor in love. But his relatively young age in the grand scheme of
life leaves him equally lustful and self-absorbed. His older age may have been a contributing
factor in his decision to move on from the amourous relations with Heloise, his distancing
himself from her seen in his claim that he never truly loved her. He also begins addressing her as
a sister in Christ, thus he uses his religious devotion as a display not only of his newfound piety
but also an obvious sign that he wishes to distance himself from her in those terms. His entering
the monastery may be seen simply then as a predictable step and return to the religious portion of
his life which he had studied intensely in the earlier part of his life.
Evident from her wide variety of sources, Dhuoda is set on providing William with an
extensive guide on how to behave in such a way as to best guarantee his survival and eventual
ascension into the heavenly afterlife. Her drawing from these sources displays her educational
background while simultaneously credits her as a reliable source and reinforces her religious
devotion as it is tied into her advice.
*For all 3, put emphasis on piety as a tool in teacher/pupil relationship, instructional role breaks
down with Abelard and Heloise
How educational background on display provides credibility reinforces religious devotion
Tie back last argument to thesis