Notes - a romance of centuries /

          Late afternoon. Cathy and Tod drove down to see your kitchen remodeling and the four of you ate a late lunch at the Brazenhead Pub at the corners of Route 42 and Tylersville Road. Everyone had burgers, chips and coleslaw but yourself who had a full order of fish and chips. The morning was spent cleaning as you may be leaving any day for Cleveland. While checking through your basement library you came across the romance of Heloise and Abelard and wonder if you can use the intensity with either Arthur and Guinevere or Merlyn and Vivien. While perusing online you found a summary on Heloise and Abelard in a stage version of the early Medieval Romance.

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Heloise and Abelard

“‘Heloise and Abelard’ is one of history’s most passionate and romantic true love stories. The nine hundred year old love affair of the 12th century philosopher and theologian and his student Heloise continues to inspire and move us. Their passionate relationship scandalized the community in which they lived. The details of their physical and spiritual intimacy is also a cautionary tale for our time.

There are still societies whose policies result in rigid attitudes of intellectual, theological and sexual repression. This great love story, and the courage and passion of its protagonists, has much to teach us about our own understanding of religious tolerance, sexual equality and intellectual freedom.

Here is an admonitory tale screaming to us from across the centuries to reason, and to question, question, question!

In twelfth century Paris, the intellectually gifted young Heloise, the niece of Notre Dame’s Canon Fulbert, strives for knowledge, truth and the answer to the question of human existence. It soon becomes apparent that only one teacher in Paris can provide the education that she seeks. Though twenty years her senior, Abelard quickly becomes intrigued by Heloise’s uncommon wit and intelligence, for Heloise is on par intellectually with Abelard.

They soon find themselves so entwined that neither can resist the spiritual and physical desires of their bodies, yet they both know that the laws of the time forbid such a relationship. But their physical love and the strength of their passion proved to be a power impossible to resist.

When Heloise becomes pregnant, they realize it is not safe for her to remain in Paris. They flee for Brittany, Abelard’s place of birth. In a scheme to protect the dignity of his fallen niece, and return Heloise to his home, Canon Fulbert arranges a secret marriage between Heloise and Abelard. But shortly after the two lovers are wed, they discover Fulbert’s true plot is to ruin Abelard and keep Heloise for himself. For her safety, Heloise escapes to the convent at Argenteuil, but it is too late for Abelard and he is brutally attacked in Paris.

As a result of his humiliating punishment, Abelard no longer considers himself capable of continuing as a teacher at Notre Dame, and he and Heloise understand what they must do. Canon Bedell pleads with Abelard to not force such a fate upon Heloise, but both Heloise and Abelard agree that they must take Holy Orders as Monk and Nun. In a heartbreaking moment, Heloise must give up her child, knowing that she will never see him again.

Through their famous correspondence of twenty years, their love continues to flourish, in spite of their separation. After many years pass, in a chance meeting, Heloise and Abelard are briefly reunited at a ceremony in Paris. Though they have been physically apart all these years, at last in the sight of the other, the former lovers realize that the love they share is the reason for human existence. As the glorious ceremony begins, they triumphantly promise to remain “Forever One”.

They never met again, yet through their famous letters, their love endures.

Six hundred years later, it was Josephine Bonaparte, so moved by their story, that she ordered that the remains of Abelard and Heloise be entombed together at Pére Lachaise cemetery in Paris. To this day, lovers from all over the world visit the tomb where the remains of Heloise and Abelard rest eternally together.”

www.abelardandheloise.com/Story.html

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         You are attempting to comment on the summary and the story but find you do not have the words to do so. As such it will be a challenge to incorporate the intensity of their love in either Arthur or Merlyn.

         I think both men have a common element in dealing with love for the two individual women. Arthur forgives Guinevere for her affair with Lancelot but spiritually (and out of guilt) she wants to remain true to the Church even though dead. And, to be true in a spiritual marriage (to Christ) even though she was not true in her real marriage. Perhaps her sin here is pride. Arthur’s sin is anger (still) with Lancelot, as his best friend did not remain true any more than his wife did.

         Merlyn’s connection (in this fourth book) with Vivien goes back to his being Vivien’s tutor. He, like Abelard, is twenty years older than Vivien. Vivien, like Heloise, is very bright and Merlyn realizes early on that he not only is in love with her but that potentially she carries more Druidic magic than himself. In this story he is not outwit by Vivien and sealed into stone in a cave. She is sealed in his heart of hearts that is not made of the stone he believes it is. And, further justice, he is also sealed in her heart of hearts but she wishes to deny he could conjure up the magic to put it there. Again, both men are dealing (at least now, as dead) with spiritual love as the physical love, it seems to me, to be more of a wish fulfilling paired effort of imagination than anything else.

         So it seems, orndorff. Most people know, however, that imagination can carry physical sex a long way in the short run. Besides, the heart knows its own reality, as is witnessed in the romance of Heloise and Abelard. Drop in the painting of the two, (imagine Vivien and Merlyn in the scene) then post. – Amorella

           I still cannot up with words to express my feelings about this love story of the centuries. 


           You have the best of reasons for this, boy -- circumstance. - Amorella