These two
editions present Peter Abelard's Exposition of the Biblical
Hexameron and a work which is a shorter version of this and
which is usually called an Abbreviation. In his Exposition, which
is much influenced by the commentaries of St Augustine, Abelard
gives priority to the historical and literal sense and attempts a
naturalistic explanation of the process of creation while retaining
symbolic and moral interpretations. Like his contemporaries,
William of Conches and Thierry of Chartres, Abelard shows an
especial interest in Plato's Timaeus, in chaos theory, in the four
elements, and in the anima mundi. But his Exposition is also a
profoundly religious work. The manuscripts and the contributions of
their various scribes are closely examined in an Introduction in
which the possibility is considered that one of these scribes may
be Abelard himself. Additions and changes made by the scribes are
printed in different types in the edition which follows. A separate
Introduction assesses the nature of the Abbreviation and compares
it with the Exposition. The two editions were begun by Mary Romig+
and Charles Burnett respectively. They have been prepared for
publication by David Luscombe.