Abelard and Heloise

Dante Alighieri wrote his Divine Comedy in the beginning of the fourteenth century. In his work, containing over one hundred cantos, Dante illustrates the eternal rewards and punishments for many historical and literary figures. In his highly organized depiction of hell, purgatory, and heaven Dante categorizes sinners and places them where they belong for eternity. Dante, however, did not mention Abelard or Heloise in his entire Divine Comedy. Abelard and Heloise are the famous couple …

…their sins of lust and also for their service to the Lord. They went on to try to repent for their sins, and that is why Dante would place them in heaven and not hell. Works Cited Abelard, Peter & Heloise. The Letters of Abelard and Heloise. Trans. Betty Radice. New York: Penguin, 1974. Alighieri, Dante. The Divine Comedy. Norton Anthology of World Masterpieces: The Western Tradition. Ed. Sarah Lawall. 7th ed. New York: Norton, 1999. 1303-1429.