ABSTRACT
The twelfth-century nun, Heloise, is most remembered for the series of letters she exchanged with the theologian, Peter Abelard, who was her teacher, lover, and later husband. Mary Hays includes her in Female Biography, viewing her as a kindred spirit. Heloise has been “read” over the centuries, primarily by male authors and translators, as a lovesick, sentimental woman. It is only in the later part of the twentieth century that feminist scholars began to focus on Heloise’s role as a learned woman and successful abbess. This article traces the history of the romanticized version of the Heloise-Abelard correspondence, on which Hays based her entry. It argues that although Hays tried to get at the historical Heloise through diligent research, her sources were flawed. She was therefore unable to foreground Heloise’s fiercely intellectual side, one of the goals of Female Biography.
