ABSTRACT
Peter Abelard was well-known for his monasticism. Notwithstanding the excellent account given by Dom Jean Leclercq, the relationship of Abelard with monasticism has not attracted much attention during the small revolution that has taken place in Abelard studies. There are at least three important aspects of the relationship of Abelar to monasticism that are yet to be explored. The first is Abelard’s view of the philosophers of antiquity in whom Abelard found a model for monastic life. The second is the value and the merits of Abelard’s criticism of the monks of his own time. The third is the question of obediences, that is, of monastic dependencies in some of which Abelard lived but which in general he criticized vehemently. Certainly monasticism before Benedict was much studied by twelfth-century monks, in particular by Peter the Venerable. Abelard admired few of his religious contemporaries.
