Francis Bacon

Francis Bacon was an English philosopher, statesman, and essayist who is regarded as one of the founders of modern science. He advocated the inductive method and the reform of knowledge, and he served as Lord Chancellor of England.

Early Life and Career

Bacon was born in 1561 in London, the son of the Lord Keeper of the Great Seal. He was educated at Trinity College, Cambridge, and at Gray's Inn.

He entered Parliament and held a series of legal and political offices. He became Attorney General and then Lord Chancellor under James I.

He was created Viscount St Albans in 1621. He was later impeached for corruption and removed from office, and he spent his last years in retirement.

The Reform of Knowledge

Bacon argued that the existing philosophy had produced little useful knowledge. He proposed a new method, based on observation and experiment, that would give humanity power over nature.

The Advancement of Learning and the Novum Organum set out his programme. The latter criticised the syllogistic logic of Aristotle and proposed the inductive method.

He described the idols of the mind, the sources of error that distort our understanding. The idols of the tribe, of the cave, of the marketplace, and of the theatre are the most famous of his classifications.

The Instauration of the Sciences

The Great Instauration was a plan for the reorganisation of knowledge in six parts. Only fragments were completed.

The New Atlantis describes an ideal society governed by a college of scientists. The work influenced the founding of the Royal Society.

Bacon also wrote on natural history and on the interpretation of nature. His vision of a collaborative science directed to practical ends anticipated the institutions of modern research.

Essays and Style

Bacon's Essays are celebrated for their aphoristic style and for their practical wisdom. They treat subjects such as truth, death, love, and ambition.

He wrote on history, on law, and on politics, and he produced a number of legal and historical works. He was also a patron of science and of letters.

He died in 1626 after a celebrated experiment on the preservation of meat by freezing. He is said to have caught a chill while stuffing a chicken with snow.

Legacy

Bacon is regarded as the father of empiricism and as a prophet of the scientific revolution. His insistence on the union of observation and experiment influenced the Royal Society.

His method was not followed in detail by the scientists who came after him, but his vision of a progressive and useful science was widely shared. The phrase knowledge is power is associated with him.

He is remembered as a philosopher, a statesman, and a writer. His essays remain a classic of English prose.

The Novum Organum

The Novum Organum set out the new method of interpreting nature. It was designed to replace the organon, the logical works of Aristotle that had dominated the schools.

Bacon described the method of induction, in which observations are collected and ordered so that the underlying forms of nature may be discovered. He proposed tables of presence, of absence, and of degrees.

He also described the experiment of the cross, which discriminates between competing explanations. The method anticipated the experimental method of later science.

The Idols of the Mind

Bacon identified four classes of error, or idols, that obstruct the understanding. The idols of the tribe are inherent in human nature, and the idols of the cave are peculiar to each individual.

The idols of the marketplace arise from the influence of language, and the idols of the theatre from received systems of philosophy. The classification was a contribution to the theory of knowledge.

The analysis of the idols was used to justify the rejection of the philosophy of the schools. It influenced the development of the critique of prejudice.

The Essays

The Essays were published in several editions and were expanded over time. They treat subjects such as truth, death, love, friendship, and ambition.

The style is aphoristic and dense, and the essays are among the finest examples of English prose of the period. They express a worldly and pragmatic wisdom.

They include the famous essay Of Studies, with its advice to read not to contradict but to weigh and consider. The essays were widely read and imitated.

Law and Politics

Bacon was a legal scholar and a judge, and he wrote on the law of England. He was involved in the reform of the legal system and supported the codification of the statutes.

He held high office under Elizabeth I and James I. He was appointed Attorney General and then Lord Chancellor, and he was created Baron Verulam and Viscount St Albans.

His political career ended in disgrace when he was found guilty of accepting gifts from litigants. He admitted the charge and was removed from office.

See also

• Scientific method
• Empiricism