OF HOW, BROUGHT LOW BY HIS LOVE FOR HÉLOISE, HE WAS WOUNDED IN BODY
AND SOUL

Now there dwelt in that same city of Paris a certain young girl
named Héloïse, the niece of a canon who was called Fulbert. Her
uncle's love for her was equalled only by his desire that she
should have the best education which he could possibly procure for
her. Of no mean beauty, she stood out above all by reason of her
abundant knowledge of letters. Now this virtue is rare among women,
and for that very reason it doubly graced the maiden, and made her
the most worthy of renown in the entire kingdom. It was this young
girl whom I, after carefully considering all those qualities which
are wont to attract lovers, determined to unite with myself in the
bonds of love, and indeed the thing seemed to me very easy to be
done. So distinguished was my name, and I possessed such advantages
of youth and comeliness, that no matter what woman I might favour
with my love, I dreaded rejection of none. Then, too, I believed
that I could win the maiden's consent all the more easily by reason
of her knowledge of letters and her zeal therefor; so, even if we
were parted, we might yet be together in thought with the aid of
written messages. Perchance, too, we might be able to write more
boldly than we could speak, and thus at all times could we live in
joyous intimacy.

Thus, utterly aflame with my passion for this maiden, I sought to
discover means whereby I might have daily and familiar speech with
her, thereby the more easily to win her consent. For this purpose I
persuaded the girl's uncle, with the aid of some of his friends, to
take me into his household--for he dwelt hard by my school--in
return for the payment of a small sum. My pretext for this was that