The Philosophy of Peter Abelard

This volume offers a reassessment of the philosophy of Peter Abelard (1079-1142) which argues that he was not, as usually presented, a predominantly critical thinker but a constructive one. By way of evidence the author offers new analyses of frequently-discussed topics in Abelard's philosophy, and examines other areas such as the nature of substances and accidents, cognition, the definition of good and evil, virtues and merit, and practical ethics in detail for the first time. Part One discusses Abelard's life and works, including questions of chronology and canon (including the question of the authenticity of the correspondence with Heloise). Part Two analyzes Abelard's ontology, epistemology and semantics, showing how he tried to reconstruct the ideas he had learned from Aristotle, Porphyry and Boethius to fit his presumption that there is nothing which is not a particular. Part Three analyzes Abelard's ethical theory, arguing that it is far wider and more sophisticated than has been believed.