Peter Abelard 1079 – 1142

Peter Abelard was a French philosopher, logician, and theologian and one of the most original thinkers of the twelfth century. He made decisive contributions to the problem of universals, arguing for a moderate position now usually called conceptualism, and he developed an ethics centered on the intention of the agent rather than on the outward act. His method of juxtaposing apparently conflicting authorities in Sic et Non helped to shape the scholastic tradition. He is also remembered for his tragic love affair with Heloise, preserved in their correspondence.