BACON AND HIS NOTABLE PHILOSOPHICAL WORKS - PART 1

Bacon has the credit of transplanting the essay into England, but he followed a different line from Montaigne. Apart from being a pioneer in essay writing, he was also a pioneer in Modern Philosophy. Though Francis Bacon belonged to the Anglican faith, his works were far related to Theology.

1.  The Novum Oraganum - The New Method : This philosophical work was published in 1620. The title of this work is a reference to Aristotle's Oraganon. This work is divided into two parts:       1) On the Interpretation of Nature and The Empire of Man
 2) On the Interpretation of Nature    / Reign of Man
The theme of  Novum Oraganum include the search of truth, the necessity of exploring the natural world and the rejection of faulty mental reasoning.  

2. Of Proficience and Advancement of Learning Divine and Human: This philosophical work was published in 1605 and is written in a form of letters to King James.  This work is written in Empirical Method and is divided into two parts. In the first part Bacon begins by praising the King for his appreciation of knowledge , then he outlines his own treatise on the 'Excellency of Learning and Knowledge'. He contradicts King Soloman, who argued that knowledge only increases anxiety, since it reveals to man his ignorance. Later he lays a distinction between Pure knowledge and Proud knowledge. 

3. New Atlansis: This is an unfinished Utopian work published posthumously in 1626. This work is full of Fanciful Didactism and describes a new Utopia, where scholars of nature (Bacon) resides. It depicts the creation of Utopian land where 'Generosity and enlightenment, dignity and splendor, piety and public spirit' ,  are the commonly held qualities of the inhabitants. There is a description of Soloman's House/ The College of Six Days' works' which anticipates the royal society. This work is purely an expression of Bacon's philosophy of science in a Romantic form, without the gift of Romance. 

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