The best moral philosophers are not content merely to develop a theory of ethics at a high level of abstraction. They wish, in addition, to give some idea of the practical implications of their theories: how they measure up to the complexities of the real world, and what sort of life is the best for man, individually and in society. Abelard is no exception. To his theoretical ethics is linked a practical examination of morality, itself conducted at a number of different levels: his social and political thought; his practical ethics and his examination of ethics in practice. As a political thinker, Abelard changes, over a decade, from being the proponent of a bold, but naively optimistic, vision of a perfect community to accepting human weakness as the basis for his thought about human communities. His Rule and the Carmen ad Astralabium are largely devoted to considering individual matters of practical ethics. And, in a wide variety of works, including sermons, his planctus and the Historia Calamitatum, Abelard uses examples (usually biblical stories and characters) to explore the workings and dilemmas of morality in practice.

SOCIETY AND THE CLASSICAL IDEAL

In Book II of his Theologia Christiana Abelard develops, in connection with his defence of the ancient philosophers, a remarkable political theory. His fundamental text is one which has been central to the whole history of political thought: Plato's Republic. The Republic is a work which neither Abelard, nor any western scholar of his century or the two following centuries, had read. But Abelard knew about it – and the vague, inaccurate impression he gained provided a core around which he could formulate his own ideas.