DOCSLIB.ORG

The Young Man from Stratford;: a Juryman's View of the Bacon

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
The Young Man from Stratford;: a Juryman's View of the Bacon 8L js\ OA WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE THE YOUNG MAN FROM STRATFORD A Juryman's View of the Bacon-Shakespeare Controversy BY HENRY SAINT-GEORGE LONDON: WM. REEVES, 83 Charing Cross Road, W.C. MCMXI Printed by The New Temple Press, Croydon. TO THE INCENTOR. How oft have you in dispute deep exclaimed ' Would it were true the author of this store Of poesy was really Shakespeare named, Then had we one great Englishman the more." It is to lift this veil of darkness dread That blots the greatness of yourself, good friend, And not to justify the poet lying dead, (For he is justified from start to end) That I have made this book of argument, Hoping to kill the shallow doubts that mar The brightness of your mind. These I resent, Knowing, but for them, how great you are. For till you're purged of such foul doubts that press Englaud is one great Englishman the less. : PREFACE. years ago the Pilgrim Fathers settled LONGthemselves in the New World and heard a strange wild-fowl sing its curiously prophetic " note. Whip-poor-Will, Whip-poor-Will," it cried, and to-day many denizens of that land are whipping poor Will Shakespeare soundly and roundly. "And, not content with this battery of his memory, they would filch from him his fame in order to hand it over to one Francis Bacon, who is already sufficiently endowed in that respect. Verily 'tis a queer world, my masters. If this singular craze had been confined to the land of its birth, if Baconianism had never passed beyond the precincts of Chicago—Porkopolis, its most appro- priate birthplace—there would be no need to give it a second thought. But this intellectual trychinosis has been imported into England, and the poison spreads, hence it behoves us to beware and waking to combat its further advance. vi Preface. This poison works by argument, and the safest precaution against infection is to know exactly what argument really is. To change the simile, argument may be called a Court of Law wherein the witnesses are Facts, the lawyers are Inference, Deduction and Analogy, the judge is Analysis, and the jury Man- kind. In this little book that I have ventured to write I hope to have shown that for Shakespeare there are a few lawyers and a few witnesses, while for Bacon there are many lawyers and no witnesses. Inference, K.C., can work up many damaging- looking things arising out of various simple, and to average minds, ordinary and easily understandable circumstances, but he is not allowed to give his opinion on the facts that the Circe of the West who " " first brewed this lep'rous distilment bore the significant name of Delia Bacon. We need not speak of her sad end. It must be conceded that a loophole is provided for these attacks by the bulk of the devout Shakespeareans, for, instead of boldly looking into the matter and endeavouring to form some reason- able idea as to what manner of man he was, they are content to imagine a William Shakespeare as they would dearly like him to be. This insubstantial wraith can be easily blown away, and the airy victory thus achieved treated as ample proof that Preface. vii the more forceful attacks are equally successful. Hence it is that we find the serried ranks of verbal parallels marshalled with their tin swords flashing fiercely in the sun, the pop-gun artillery of historical parallel, ready to discharge its parched-pea missiles, and the harmless mines of inference which are expected to blast poor Will's reputation as a man of knowledge and observation for ever. The verbal parallels I have treated fully in this booklet. The historical parallels are demolished by the axiom "History repeats itself." Histories of men and women, whether in fact or fiction, are an endless chain of repetitions. The world's history is concrete mathematics, and we are wisely denied the formulas of its arithmetical elements, for accurate foreknowledge would rob us of our energies. Bacon and Shakespeare—Shakespeare and Bacon. How these two names stand out to the student of genius ! Just as there is no trace of similarity in their writings, so is it impossible to compare the men, save that presumably each had the usual complement of limbs and organs. What would Shakespeare have been had he possessed Bacon's learning ? What, indeed, yet is it not thinkable that his volatile fancy might have been crushed beneath the weight of so colossal a scholarship ? And take the opposite case. What would Bacon have been viii Preface. without his learning? Did his mind possess that radium-like property, that internal energy, that could maintain the brilliant fusillade without recuperation from external sources, or was he not rather an intellectual mill grinding patiently what grain was brought him in his studies, and so making him amanuensis to the thought of his time? In Bacon we have that genius which is the "capacity for taking infinite pains," in Shakespeare we find a form of genius which has not yet been classified, and which still defies analysis. And now—a grain of comfort for Shakespeareans who are fearful of these onslaughts. Eacon is not the only claimant. Some there are who are con- vinced that the Earl of Rutland wrote the plays. Others are equally positive that one William Shapleigh wrote them, and again others maintain stoutly that Henry Wriothesly, Earl of Southampton, was the real author of these immortal works. Let them fight it out amongst themselves, and, in their mutual demolition, leave William Shakespeare where he stands, untouched, unapproachable, supreme. INTRODUCTION. Fellow Jurymen— We have the responsibility of arriving at a definite conclusion in a case of the gravest import- ance and the most immediate necessity : for the authenticity of the personality of our National Bard is a question that should now be set surely at rest, if, indeed, it be ever possible to attain that desirable end. First, let me explain the form in which I now address you, and the circumstances that have led to that address. I, in common with a large number of people, had been what I would call a Negative Shakespearean. That is to say, I, from force of habit merely, attri- buted the "Shakespeare Plays" to their traditional author. I was certainly dimly aware that there existed somewhere a Baconian cult, but without going into the question took the more popular side, i 2 2 The Young Man from Stratford. and treated all who would dethrone the Swan of Avon with the contemptuous indifference I felt was their only desert. Then it fell out that a Great Friend revealed to me the fearsome fact that he was a staunch Baconian, and furthermore contended that Francis Bacon's authorship of the plays attributed " to Shakespeare was a matter that had been proved up to the hilt," as though anything in this world could claim such certitude ! My fast-cooling regard for him was fanned again into a semblance of its former warmth when I discovered that, while upholding the Baconian faction to the fullest, he had as much contempt for the section that toyed with ciphers—bi-literal, or " otherwise—as could any victim of Shakespeari- olatry." I then perceived that there could be Baconians and Baconians, and that the nobler- minded of them might be worthy of attention. My Great Friend thereupon lent me certain books written by lawyers in which was alleged to be proved " " beyond the shadow of a doubt that the Baconians were in the right. " These books, three in number, were The Mystery of William Shakespeare," by His Honour Judge Webb, "The Bacon-Shakespeare Controversy," by " Lord Penzance and The Problem of the Shakes- peare Plays," by G. C. Bompas, K.C. These three Introduction. 3 powerful advocates of Baconianism have made me a Positive Shakespearean, and in the following pages I propose to show you how. The first of these interesting examples of the " power of ratiocination is sub-titled A Summary of Evidence." The second purports to be in the form of a judge's summing up in addressing a jury, and the book by Bompas, while not professing such, is practically a speech for the prosecution. And now, dear readers, you know why I address you as fellow jurymen. There are further justifications for taking upon myself the quality of juryman in this case. I must frankly state at the outset in self -protection that I am writing on a subject I know very little about. It seems a quaint idea, but its quaintness lies in the acknowledgment only : the practice is common enough in all conscience. And if I lack special knowledge in the way of independent study or research, I must also plead my deficiency in the matter of skill in argument. But what is the cus- tomary procedure in grave cases? On whom rests the onus of the ultimate verdict? On the lawyers —on the judge, himself? Of course not. A certain " number of good men and true," v/ho have known absolutely nothing of the matter in hand before, and who are entirely without legal training, are set 4 The Young Man from Stratford. above all these as the fairest deciders. You and I, dear readers, are of their number. Therefore chide me not that I plunge into this dispute with my puny pen, but accept it as the natural outcome of Lord Penzance's "Gentlemen of the Jury!" What are a juryman's qualifications? (1). He must be between the ages of twenty-one and sixty.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Francis Bacon´S Philosophy Under Educational Perspective
    International Journal of Humanities and Social Science Vol. 3 No. 17; September 2013 Francis Bacon´S Philosophy under Educational Perspective Gustavo Araújo Batista – PhD Docent at Master Degree Program University of Uberaba - Brazil Abeuntstudia in mores. Francis Bacon Abstract This article has as main objective to make a concise approach about Francis Bacon’s (1561-1626) philosophy, dimensioning it inside educational area. It will be done a summary explanation of his historical context (Renaissance), of some of his works and of some of the main topics of his philosophy, demonstrating its applicability to pedagogy. By developing a conceptual and contextual approach, this study has adopted as its theoretical-methodological reference the historical-dialectical materialism, according to Lucien Goldmann (1913-1970), appointing as main result the alert done by Bacon in relation to knowledge usefulness in order to improve human being´s lifetime, this knowledge that, identifying itself to power, it allows to mankind to dominate natural world and, equally, to itself, wining, so, its own weakness and limitations, because its own ignorance is the root of the evils of which suffer, as well as the material and spiritual difficulties in the presence of which it founds itself, reason for which education, by adopting that conception as one of its foundation, there will be thought and practiced in a way to be aware to the responsibility that knowledge brings with itself. Keywords: Education. Francis Bacon. Philosophy. Science. Introduction This text has as its objective to deal with, summarily, the thought of the English philosopher Francis Bacon (1561-1626), appointing, simultaneously, its convergences to educational field.
    [Show full text]
  • The Memory of God. Hans Blumenberg's Philosophy
    The Memory of God Hans Blumenberg's Philosophy of Religion Rasmussen, Ulrik Houlind Publication date: 2009 Document version Publisher's PDF, also known as Version of record Document license: CC BY-NC-ND Citation for published version (APA): Rasmussen, U. H. (2009). The Memory of God: Hans Blumenberg's Philosophy of Religion. Københavns Universitet: Publikationer fra Det teologiske Fakultet. Download date: 07. apr.. 2020 The Memory of God Hans Blumenberg’s Philosophy of Religion Was ist eigentlich Aura? Ein sonderbares Gespinst aus Raum und Zeit: einmalige Erscheinung einer Ferne, so nah sie sein mag. Walter Benjamin Ph.D.‐Thesis by Ulrik Houlind Rasmussen Theological Faculty, University of Copenhagen Supervisor: Prof., Dr. Theol. Arne Grøn July 2009 The Memory of God Hans Blumenberg’s Philosophy of Religion Publikationer fra Det Teologiske Fakultet 9 Licensed under CreativeCommons Ulrik Houlind Rasmussen ISBN 978-87-91838-17-0 (print) ISBN 978-87-93361-37-9 (pdf) Trykning og indbindning: Det Samfundsvidenskabelige Fakultets ReproCenter Københavns Universitet 2009 Udgivet af: Det Teologisk Fakultet Københavns Universitet Karen Blxens Plads 16 2300 København S www.teol.ku.dk Contents PRELUDE: DIFFICULTIES REMEMBERING TO FORGET .................................................................................. ‐ 5 ‐ 1.E TH MAIN THEME OF THIS DISSERTATION ................................................................................................. ‐ 7 ‐ 1.1 THE DEATH(S) OF GOD........................................................................................................................................‐
    [Show full text]
  • Francis Bacon – A.S
    Prof. Monti – classe IV – Francis Bacon – a.s. 2016/2017 Francis Bacon 1561 - 1626 1. IL PROFETA DELLA TECNICA Se Galileo ha chiarito il metodo della ricerca scientifica, Bacon ha intravisto per primo e in modo chiaro il potere che la scienza offre sulla natura e, in questo senso, l’ha concepita come orientata alla realizzazione del regnum hominis. Nato a Londra, studiò a Cambridge e trascorse poi alcuni anni a Parigi al seguito dell’Ambasciatore d’Inghilterra. Di ritorno in patria volle intraprendere la carriera politica, ma non poté ottenere incarichi importanti sino a che visse la regina Elisabetta. Salito al trono Giacomo I, nel 1603, Bacon seppe sfruttare l’appoggio del favorito del re, Lord Buckingham, per ottenere cariche e onori. Venne così nominato avvocato generale (1607), poi procuratore generale (1613), infine Lord Guardasigilli (1617) e Lord Cancelliere (1618). Divenne anche Barone di Verulamio e Visconte di S. Albano. Quando Giacomo I, nel 1621, dovette convocare il parlamento per chiedere l’imposizione di nuove tasse, Bacon fu accusato di avere accettato doni in denaro nell’esercizio delle sue funzioni e si ammise colpevole. A questo punto Bacon decise di ritirarsi dalla vita politica e trascorse negli studi gli ultimi anni della sua vita. La sua carriera politica, come abbiamo visto, fu quella di un cortigiano abile e senza scrupoli. Uomo amante del denaro e della bella vita, ebbe una concezione altissima dell’utilità e del valore della scienza in servizio dell’uomo e dei suoi bisogni. Tutte le sue opere, non a caso, tendono a illustrare il progetto di una ricerca scientifica che, portando il metodo sperimentale in tutti i campi della realtà faccia di questa il “dominio dell’uomo”.
    [Show full text]
  • Iv History of Scientific Method
    IV THE PLACE OF FRANCIS BACON IN THE HISTORY OF SCIENTIFIC METHOD RANCIS BACON has been popularly accounted as the F father of modern ‘science and its method. Unfor- tunately, that sort of title has been given to many people. In fact, it must be remarked that on the tree of knowledge, considered as a family tree, many a “bar sinister” is hung; for it is rare in science that the son knows his own father. Even where parentage may be conceivable, an oblique descent is so much more the rule than the exception, that it is quite possible that we can find a more appropriate name for the relation which Bacon bore to the several scientific disciplines. Let us spend a few moments in investigating this problem of paternity. The question is not one of the importance of Bacon, but rather more definite. It may be stated as fol- lows: If there had been no Bacon, would the future of science have been essentially different, or would its develop- ment have been materially slower? I think we may give the negative answer to both these questions. Let us consider, therefore, the states of various modern sciences, and see if they may be traced back more or less directly to a source. Probably we can all agree that up to the middle of the last century, at least, the most important body of natural science was that of physics and astronomy, with its mathe- matical systematization. Along this branch the lines of descent seem straighter than elsewhere. Two modern 73 74 Lectures on Francis Bacon names are characteristic of it more than any others.
    [Show full text]
  • Chapter Ii the Enlightenment’S Critique of Tradition
    CHAPTER II THE ENLIGHTENMENT’S CRITIQUE OF TRADITION Suspicion of the authority of tradition is the very signature of the Age of Reason, and particularly, of the Enlightenment. In the last chapter we saw how the suspicion to which tradition was subjected led to a profound misunderstanding of its very nature. If tradition is not merely doctrines or beliefs transmitted from the past, but the very context in which they are interpreted, then the effort to subordinate tradition to reason will necessarily diminish the understanding of tradition. A part of tradition, that aspect of it which can be deliberately examined, will take the place of the whole. The dimension of tradition which operates in an unconscious and pre-conscious way will be consigned to the realm of prejudice. It is pre-judgmental in that it comprises ingrained ways of thought which, many would say, need to be fully illumined by reason if they are not to hinder the search for truth. This is the heritage of the Enlightenment, which will be the topic of this chapter. According to the pessimistic assessment of the Enlightenment, tradition (and the prejudices which accrue to it) have obscured the true nature of things. The thinkers of this age set for themselves the task of enlightening what had, up until their time, remained in darkness. Their chief tool would be the human reason. This reason, however, is not viewed by the eighteenth century in a communal sense, as a common heritage which binds a society together by a general agreement about what is reasonable. No one inherits reason, this age proclaimed, and God has not planted it as an innate idea in the human mind.
    [Show full text]
  • Francis Bacon: a Ter­ Centenary
    FRANCIS BACON: A TER­ CENTENARY HERBERT L. STEWART It is not too much to say that in temper. in honesty. in labour. in humility. in reverence, Bacon was the most perfect example that the world had yet seen of the student of Nature, the enthusiast of knowledge. DEAN CHURCH. Bacon was like a barometer that announced the coming of fine weather, and was absurdly supposed to have produced it. JOSEPH DE MAISTRE. Thou knowest him, 0 reader. He is that stupendous Bacon, who discovered the new way of discovering truth . In brief, they have detected this poor Chancellor to be a hungry Jew of Whitechapel, selling judgment for a bit of money. They twitch the purple cloak off him, all the learned wigs, patch-coifs and trappings off him. and say-with nostrils dilated in disgust-Go! He goes, one of the sorrow fullest of all mortals. to beg bread in Gray's Inn, to augment the sciences. if from the like of him the sciences have any augment to expect. CARL YLE. N the day of the execution of Charles I, it was remarked by O Samuel Pepys that a good text for preachers would be the motto "The memory of the wicked shall rot." But Pepys, on that 30th January, 1649, was only sixteen years old. With the lapse of time the bitterness of his censure was assuaged. He came to see that mankind is not quite sharply divided into "the wicked" and "the righteous." And he was destined to look with an indulgent eye upon the sins of another monarch, at least not superior to the object of his youthful reprobation.
    [Show full text]
  • On the Affinities Between Bacon's Philosophy and Skepticism
    Kriterion vol.2 no.se Belo Horizonte 2006 On the affinities between Bacon's philosophy and skepticism Luiz A. A. Eva Artigo substituído em Setembro de 2008 por solicitação do editor do periódico. ABSTRACT This text aims at examining the relations between Bacon’s reflections on the limits of our faculties and philosophical skepticism — a theme not so dominant in the most recent literature, despite the many references to that philosophy. Even though these references seem at first sight somewhat vague and imprecise, we came to the conclusion that not only a close exam can reveal the relevance of the theme in regard to the comprehension of Bacon’s own philosophy, but also show his interest in contemporary skeptical literature. The distinctive features of his own interpretation seem to anticipate how skepticism is to be understood by future philosophers as Hume, for instance. Keywords: Bacon, Skepticism, Idols, Empiricism, Montaigne, Descartes. As Michel Malherbe says in his edition of the French version of Novum organum , this work of Bacon, at times celebrated, at times neglected, has always been poorly read. Although he alludes here to its fortunes in France, his remark is relevant in a much more general way, in spite of the fact that some of the most important modern philosophers have made use of this author in order to define the meaning of their own enterprises. Hume refers to Bacon as the father of experimental physics and depicts his science of human nature as an attempt to continue the work he embarked upon and which was carried on by other British moralists, since they made experience the foundation for reflection.
    [Show full text]
  • Carla Locatelli Department of Psychology and Cognitive Science, University of Trento Corso Bettini, 84 –38068 Rovereto (Tn), Italy Email: [email protected]
    “On Truth and Lying” in a Literary Sense: Thinking or Tinkering? Carla Locatelli Department of Psychology and Cognitive Science, University of Trento Corso Bettini, 84 –38068 Rovereto (Tn), Italy Email: [email protected] Abstract: Starting from Nietzsche’s notion of “truth and lying in a non moral sense” the essay develops a historical inquiry into the definitions of literature in relation to the possibility of literary errors and mistakes. The historical shift in hermeneutics from text to reading highlights the epistemological valorization of literature as a source of knowledge potentially susceptible to error and mistakes. Through the contributions of many writers and philosophers concerned with the truth of literary knowledge, a recurrent cognitive apprehension about literature is outlined, taking into consideration a long variety of different formulations, from Plato to Aristotle, from Bacon to Sidney, from the Romantics to the Formalists, and from Barthes to Derrida, and beyond. Their contributions highlight the ever-changing loci of error from text to reception, from hermeneutics to readability. They also help in defining the disciplinary boundaries that would differentiate literary texts from scientific ones. Keywords: errors and mistakes, fictional worlds, disciplinary knowledge, co(n)texts, textual implications, readability, semiosis, history of literary cognition. 1. Errors and Mistakes: Cognitive Fables and Reliable Knowledge The obvious allusion in my title refers to a well-known, and crucially transformative work: Nietzsche’s On Truth and Lying in a Non-Moral Sense (Nietzsche 1999, 139-153), plausibly a work of philosophy, but actually a work of literature, if ‘literature’ is taken as it has been interpreted by several theorists in the Twentieth Century, who maintained that there is no “essence of Literature” (with a capital “L”)1.
    [Show full text]
  • Full Text in Pdf Format
    Vol. 17: 51–62, 2017 ETHICS IN SCIENCE AND ENVIRONMENTAL POLITICS Published October 23 https://doi.org/10.3354/esep00177 Ethics Sci Environ Polit Contribution to the Theme Section ‘The ethics and practice of openness in life sciences data’ OPENPEN ACCESSCCESS The maladies of enlightenment science Tim Wyatt* Barrio A Tomada, Borreiros, Gondomar, 36378 Pontevedra, Spain ABSTRACT: Some of the amalgam of activities which comprise traditional science (‘real’ science) has fragmented into new modes under pressure from internal and external factors. The adoption of the internet and the World Wide Web (which have created cyberscience and are internal fac- tors) can be equated with the introduction of the microscope and other instruments and proce- dures, though they have revolutionized the whole of science rather than some of its branches. External factors discussed here include post-modernism, neoliberalism, and McDonaldization. In post-modern science, the traditional model has become burdened by social and political interests, and concerns for practical problems in which scientific expertise can assist decision making; how- ever scientific knowledge in itself is not a priority. Neoliberal guile has parasitized science as it has so much else in search of profit, and has seriously damaged its host. There are also degraded or pathological activities, ‘McScience’, in which the pursuit of knowledge has been corrupted by an excess of bureaucratic control and over-emphasis on personal rankings. The ethos which guides traditional science has been warped
    [Show full text]
  • Francis Bacon and the “Interpretation of Nature” in the Late Renaissance
    View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Apollo Francis Bacon and the “Interpretation of Nature” in the Late Renaissance By Richard Serjeantson* ABSTRACT The “interpretation of nature” (interpretatio naturae) is the leading idea in Francis Bacon’s natural philosophy. But by contrast with his ideas about method, induction, or experiment, the significance of the “interpretation of nature” has received very little scholarly attention. This essay tests the originality of Bacon’s idea by means of a focused survey of existing forms of Renaissance natural knowledge—Aristotelian and anti- Aristotelian natural philosophy, Galenic and Paracelsian medicine, natural magic, phys- iognomy, natural history—before turning to consider the much more prominent place of “interpretation” in the fields of Renaissance logic, revealed and natural theology, and law. It finds that Bacon’s application of the idea of “interpretation” to nature was highly original, but also that certain important aspects of his conception have analogies in Renaissance civil law. The essay concludes by exploring the implications of these findings for a recent body of scholarship in the history of the sciences that invokes the notion of the “interpretation of nature” to characterize pre-Baconian natural philosophy more generally. NUMBER OF RECENT STUDIES in the history of the sciences have come to the A view that Renaissance natural philosophers took it as their goal to “interpret” nature. Peter Harrison, in particular, has argued that
    [Show full text]
  • La Comunicación Intercultural
    1 © PUOC, S.L. Comunicar para triunfar Somos diferentes, comunicamos de forma diferente: la comunicación intercultural Somos diferentes, comunicamos de forma diferente: la comunicación intercultural En pocos años hemos podido asistir a numerosos cambios tanto tecnológicos como sociales. Uno de los más importantes es lo que se denomina globalización. No es aquí en este curso el discutir sobre las ventajas o inconvenientes de este importante fenómeno. Hemos de analizar el impacto de la globalización en la comunicación humana y como nos preparamos para ello. La mayor parte de nosotros tiene que realizar contactos con personas de otras lenguas y culturas. Lo cierto es que nadie nos ha enseñado como manejarnos en este contexto. Tampoco podemos afirmar que tengamos al alcance de la mano la suficiente investigación y los análisis de métodos que nos permitan aplicar fórmulas probadas. Somos seguramente los primeros humanos confrontados con la globalización y de algún modo pagamos el precio de ser pioneros. El hecho de tener que viajar más, el aumento de trabajadores inmigrantes, las multinacionales, etc. nos impulsan hacia un marco comunicacional complejo que sólo se puede manejar si se dispone o adquiere una serie de actitudes abiertas y habilidades específicas. Este capítulo, dedicado a la comunicación intercultural podría ser en sí mismo un curso, dada la complejidad de la materia y la necesidad de ir a fondo de los temas. Es por ello que el objetivo de este capítulo se limita a sensibilizar y dar pistas de actuación en el área comunicativa. No podemos ir más lejos, aunque creo que si lo conseguimos es un paso importante en la dirección correcta.
    [Show full text]
  • The Instauration of Human Dominion Over Nature in Francis Bacon Novum Organum
    THE INSTAURATION OF HUMAN DOMINION OVER NATURE IN FRANCIS BACON NOVUM ORGANUM Gregorius Ari Nugrahanta Abstrak: Keberhasilan Kristophorus Columbus menemukan dunia baru dengan pelayar- annya sampai ke kepulauan Bahamas 1492 membuka cakrawala baru. Penemuan baru ini dimungkinkan berkat penemuan-penemuan sebelumnya dalam ilmu pengetahuan. Terobosan ini membuat orang bertanya, mengapa selama berabad- abad sebelumnya tidak terjadi penemuan baru dalam ilmu pengetahuan dan kondisi apa yang memungkinkan orang untuk menemukan hal-hal baru dalam ilmu pengetahuan. Francis Bacon (1561-1626) dalam buku Novum Organum menemukan bahwa ilmu pengetahuan yang diwariskan sampai saat itu tidak menghantar orang pada penemuan-penemuan baru, karena ilmu pengetahuan tersebut memiliki cacat fundamental. Bacon ingin memulai restorasi total terhadap ilmu pengetahuan. Untuk itu ia merumuskan filsafat alam yang baru yang mencoba menggabungkan rasio dan alam dengan instrumen yang baru sebagai metode ilmiah, yaitu metode induksi. Upaya restorasi total ini tidak lain adalah upaya untuk mengembalikan kemampuan manusia untuk mengontrol alam. Keywords: ilmu pengetahuan, kekuasaan, penemuan baru, restorasi, rasio, natur, metode induksi. 1. Introduction The success of the voyage of Christopher Columbus (1451-1506) to the Bahamas Islands on 12 October 1492 opened a new horizon in Europe. New possibilities emerged, and what people never dreamt of, became thinkable and even possible. The discovery of the new continent, however, came as a result of some previous important discoveries, i.e. the printing machine, the gun powder and the compass. The compass was the most important tool for navigation. With it Columbus could make a voyage beyond Europe to discover a new world. The discovery of the new continent awakened people from a long dogmatic sleep.
    [Show full text]