Bacon and knowledge are power. Francis Bacon (156 1- 1626) was a British philosopher and founder of empiricism at the turn of the century. In his time, Europe had got rid of the shadow of the Middle Ages. Although the most glorious period of the Renaissance has passed, its afterglow has not been exhausted, and social productive forces and science and technology have made great progress. This historical background left a deep mark on Bacon's philosophy. Bacon was born in a new noble family developed during the Reformation, and his father was the king's minister in charge of the seal. He entered Oxford University at the age of 12. After graduating from college, he began to go into politics. Has served as deputy attorney general, attorney general and other important positions. 16 17 was appointed minister in charge of the seal, and 1665438 was appointed chief justice. In the same year, he was made Baron Verulam (666). Just when he was in the heyday of officialdom, he was suddenly accused of taking bribes and was taken to the Tower of London, but he was released by the king four days later.59986.99999998996 His main works are: Academic Progress, New Tools, New Island, etc.
Bacon's greatest contribution to philosophy is that he put forward a series of principles of materialist empiricism; Formulated a systematic inductive logic, emphasizing the role of experiments in understanding. Marx and Engels called Bacon "the first founder of British materialism"; It is "the true ancestor of the whole experimental science" and a scientific summary of Bacon's philosophical characteristics. Bacon believes that the world is an objective existence independent of human will, and human knowledge (knowledge) can only be obtained from the objective outside world through perceptual experience. He said: "Man is a servant and interpreter of nature, so all he can do and understand is what he sees about the facts and thoughts of natural processes." In his view, the authenticity of knowledge is consistent with the authenticity of existence. "The difference between them is only direct light and reflected light", which is a quite thorough materialist reflection theory. Why do people's understanding have to start with experience? Because in bacon's view, objective external things can only be perceived by people through the senses. In his words, "the individual (objective external things) first stimulates the senses, and the senses seem to be the entrance and portal of reason." It is worth noting that although Bacon emphasized the importance of perceptual experience to people's understanding, he did not absolutize it. He just emphasized that the senses are the necessary channel for people to know the outside world, but he didn't say that all the knowledge gained through the senses is correct, let alone that this kind of knowledge is all the knowledge. On the contrary, he believes that the senses themselves are limited. For example, the senses may not be able to clearly understand objects that are not too exposed, too small or too far away in space, so he said: "It is a big mistake to draw the conclusion that the senses are the measure of everything." This passage is aimed at the proposition that "man is the measure of all things" put forward by the ancient Greek philosopher protagoras. Thus, Bacon is indeed a profound philosopher. In the past, we often had a misunderstanding that Bacon only emphasized perceptual knowledge and completely ignored rational knowledge. That was not the case. We can see this clearly through the metaphor he used. He said that bees collect honey from flower beds and flowers in the field. After bees collect pollen, they must go through their own processing to make sweet and delicious honey. People's understanding is the same, raw materials can only be obtained from the outside world through the senses, but this does not mean that real knowledge has been obtained. People must also "change and digest these materials obtained from the outside world and keep them reasonable" through their own brains, thus forming real knowledge. What is particularly commendable is that Bacon attaches great importance to the role of scientific experiments in cognition. This is related to Bacon being not only a philosopher, but also a scientist. He thinks that experiment is different from experience, which is naturally formed and controlled by people. Through scientific experiments, people can often gain knowledge that they can't get from experience. "The mystery of nature is easier to reveal under technical intervention than in natural activities." It can be seen from this that although Bacon is an empiricist, he is not satisfied with the knowledge gained through perceptual experience, but emphasizes that only through scientific experiments that can give full play to people's subjective initiative and creativity can he gain more profound knowledge. Although Bacon did not put forward the concept of social practice, and his philosophy did not exceed the level of mechanical materialism as a whole, from his emphasis on the important role of scientific experiments, he was better than many philosophers of old materialism.
Another feature of Bacon's epistemology is that he believes that to understand nature, we must break all kinds of obstacles in human mind and realize rational liberation. In his view, people's cognitive errors come from two aspects, that is, from feelings and minds, and mental errors have a greater impact on people's understanding. He said: "The mind is far from being compared with the nature of a clear and bright mirror, and the light of things can be reflected on it according to its true incident angle;" No, this is an enchanted mirror. If its evil influence is not removed and restored to its original state, it will be full of superstition and fraud. "The evil influence comes from the spiritual aspect. Bacon pointed out that there are four kinds of illusions: racial illusion, cave illusion, market illusion and theater illusion. Racial illusion refers to the common mistakes made by human beings; Cave illusion means that some people confuse their imaginary theories everywhere and force objective things to conform to their own thoughts; Market illusion refers to mistakes caused by improper use of concepts and terms, especially when objective things have changed and the original concepts and terms have no time to make corresponding changes, it is easier to make such mistakes; Theater illusion refers to the mistakes made by blindly believing in traditional philosophy. Here, Bacon criticized Plato and Aristotle's philosophy, which had great influence in the history of European philosophy. Bacon's theory of four illusions was inherited from the famous nominalist philosopher Roger Bacon in the Middle Ages. Rogier believes that there are four obstacles to cognition: 1, and there is no strength and authority of strength; 2. The power of inheritance and habit; 3. Prejudice of the unlearned; 4. Ignorance hidden under the mask of intelligence. Of course, Francis Bacon's viewpoint goes further than Rogier's analysis of the four cognitive obstacles, and it is more specific and detailed.
Above, we made a brief introduction to Bacon's empiricism. It can be seen that Bacon attached importance to perceptual experience and scientific experiments, which is just the opposite of medieval theology and scholasticism, which emphasized revelation and belief. His philosophy is essentially against theology and scholasticism. This can also be seen from his proposition that knowledge is power. For a long time, many books and papers about Bacon have mentioned the proposition that "knowledge is power", but in which book did Bacon put forward this proposition, without paying any price. Over time, people even wondered whether Bacon had put forward this proposition. Not long ago, I read The History of World Civilization by will durant, an American scholar, and realized that this proposition did not exist in Bacon's existing works such as Academic Progress, New Tools and New Island, but it was left in the fragment of his Meditations. Its Latin is: This Meditation has not been published, so some people only know that Bacon said "knowledge is power", but they don't know where he said it.
Bacon-knowledge is power "knowledge is power", "truth is the daughter of time, not authority". These are two famous sayings of Francis Bacon, an outstanding British materialist philosopher and scientist in the17th century. He is regarded as an epoch-making figure in the history of philosophy and science among Renaissance giants. Marx called him "the true ancestor of British materialism and the whole modern experimental science".
Bacon was born in 156 1 1 22, a bureaucratic family in London. My father is Queen Elizabeth's minister in charge of the national seal. He is studying law at Cambridge University. His thoughts tend to be progressive and oppose the Pope's interference in British internal affairs. My mother is a well-known talented woman. She is proficient in Greek and Latin and a believer in Calvinism. Good family education made Bacon mature earlier and showed extraordinary intelligence in all aspects. /kloc-At the age of 0/2, Bacon was sent to Trinity College, Cambridge University for further study.
After studying at Cambridge University for three years, Bacon came to France as an attache of Sir Emo Polly, the British ambassador to France. During his two and a half years in Paris, he traveled almost all over France, met many new things and absorbed many new ideas, which played a great role in the formation of his world outlook. From 65438 to 0579, Bacon's father died suddenly, and Bacon's life began to fall into poverty. After that, he wanted to make a difference in politics and run around, but he was always frustrated. During this period, Bacon became more mature in thought. He is determined to reform all knowledge divorced from reality and nature, and introduce empirical observation, factual basis and practical effects into epistemology. This great ambition is the main goal of his "great rejuvenation of science" and the ambition he has been fighting for all his life.
1602, Elizabeth died and James I succeeded to the throne. Because Bacon advocated the merger of Scotland and England, which was greatly appreciated by James, Bacon rose rapidly. 1602 was knighted, 1604 was appointed as James' consultant, 1607 was appointed as deputy attorney general, and 16 13 was appointed as chief prosecutor. 16 16 was appointed as an adviser to the Privy Council; 16 17 was promoted to minister in charge of the seal; 16 18 was promoted to the official position in mainland England and was awarded the title of Baron Verulan; 162 1 was awarded the title of Viscount Albens. But Bacon's talent lies not in state affairs, but in seeking scientific truth. During this period, he made great achievements in academic research and published many books.
162 1 year, Bacon was accused of corruption and bribery by Congress, fined 40,000 pounds by the High Court, imprisoned in the Tower of London, and expelled from the court for life, and was not allowed to serve as a member of parliament or official position. Although he was later exempted from fines and imprisonment, Bacon was destroyed. From then on, Bacon ignored politics and began to concentrate on theoretical writing.
Bacon devoted himself to the great academic revival all the year round. The second book, The Theory of New Tools, was published in 1620, which is a book with great influence in the history of philosophy of science.
Bacon is a controversial and important figure in the history of science. But as a philosopher of science, Bacon's contribution in history can not be ignored. He is the main representative of guiding the development of science with neo-materialist philosophy, and he is the first person to realize the historical significance of science and its important position in human life.
Francis Bacon is a materialist philosopher. He did not engage in specific research in his scientific career. In his own words, he wants to be a scientific Columbus. In his book "Academic Progress" published by 1605, he mainly expounded this view. Under the guidance of this viewpoint, Bacon made an in-depth study and discussion on the scientific method from the philosophical principle. First of all, he clearly pointed out that the goal of science is to improve human life with new discoveries and inventions. This is one of the outstanding features of his philosophy. To this end, he put forward the famous slogan "knowledge is power".
Bacon expounded a series of his epistemology about science in his masterpiece The Great Rejuvenation of Learning. The second part, the new tool theory, is the core of this book.
Bacon believed that the academic tradition at that time was poor because of the loss of contact between academics and experience. He advocates that scientific theory and science and technology should complement each other. He once listed 130 topics and operation methods that he thought were worth studying, and asked James I to issue an order to collect this knowledge. In fact, he only got very limited information. On this basis, he put forward a series of views and propositions about science. For example, he suggested that the essence of heat is movement, because there is heat and there is movement. He also believes that the cause of sensible thermal effect is the movement of particles under the phenomenon, which has the characteristics of atoms and so on.
Francis Bacon's philosophy is materialistic. He opposed scholasticism and idealism. He strongly criticized scholasticism and advocated breaking "idols" and eradicating all kinds of prejudices and fantasies. He advocated the theory of double truth and emphasized the important role of the development of natural science in human life. He believes that nature is material, material is diverse and dynamic, and human beings master knowledge in order to understand and conquer nature. He believes that all knowledge comes from feeling, and feeling is reliable.
Bacon's scientific methods are mainly experimental qualitative and inductive. The progressive side of his thought reflects the requirements of the British bourgeoisie for scientific development in the rising period. But his theory is also full of theological imperfections, such as the existence of "rational soul". He disagreed with the use of mathematics and deduction in scientific methods, and his views had a great influence on mechanical materialism.
Francis Bacon is the first philosopher who put forward the principle of empiricism in the history of modern philosophy. He attached importance to the role of sensory experience and inductive logic in the process of cognition, initiated a new era of empirical philosophy of perceptual nature with experience, played a positive role in promoting the establishment of modern science, and made great historical contributions in the history of human philosophy and science. To this end, Russell revered Bacon as "a pioneer in logically organizing scientific research procedures".
Francis Bacon's works have long attracted the interest of historians. As a British judge, he was the main political designer of James I's parliamentary project until he was found taking bribes at 1623. His prose and historical plays have always been highly praised by literary critics, but he mainly devoted himself to the innovation of knowledge of nature. Indeed, his unfinished "Great Rejuvenation" had a very important impact in the second half of this century, so that people can safely think that many of the work carried out by emerging scientific societies and academies at that time was inspired by Bacon.
Commemorating Bacon: Experts interpret the practical significance of "knowledge is power" and earnestly respect knowledge, science and talents, which is the most important enlightenment left to contemporary people by Bacon's assertion that "knowledge is power". Xing Bensi, former vice president of the Central Party School, expounded this view in an interview with Xinhua News Agency on the 8th.
Bacon was called "the true ancestor of British materialism and the whole modern experimental science" by Marx. He put forward the view that "knowledge is power" hundreds of years ago, and it still has important practical significance today. Xing Bens believes that the practical significance of this thesis is mainly reflected in its generalization of the important role of science and technology in the contemporary era.
No matter from the international scope or from the history of China, the role of science and technology is increasingly obvious. At present, China is in a critical period of development, facing a series of major tasks, such as optimizing economic structure, rationally utilizing resources, protecting ecological environment, promoting coordinated regional development, improving population quality, and completely eradicating poverty. The completion of these tasks is inseparable from the development and progress of science.
Xing Bensi pointed out that China's economic and social development is facing increasing pressure from population, resources, environment and ecology. In order to solve these difficulties, it is necessary to further develop science and technology. We must rely on science and technology, take the road of sustainable development, reasonably control population growth, save natural resources and protect the ecological environment.
"Internationally, the rapid development of natural science today is both an opportunity and a challenge for China. We must vigorously develop science and technology and catch up. " Xing Bens said that science and technology are of vital importance to a developing socialist country and are related to the future and destiny of China.
Fundamentally speaking, accelerating the development of science and technology, promoting economic revitalization and all-round social progress depends on improving the quality of workers and cultivating a large number of high-quality talents. Therefore, to truly turn knowledge into strength, we need to respect knowledge, science and talents.
Bacon-knowledge is power Francis Bacon was a great philosopher, thinker and scientist, and was called "the true ancestor of British materialism and the whole modern experimental science" by Marx. His motto "knowledge is power" is well known.
Bacon was born at 156 1 1.22 in new noble. His father was born in poverty, but he became a vassal of England by his own efforts. Bacon is still a child, and his father often takes him to court. He showed wisdom and maturity beyond his age and won the favor of Queen Elizabeth, who often called him "Minister of Small Seal". Bacon/Kloc-entered Trinity College of Cambridge University at the age of 0/2. During his college years, he became suspicious of traditional ideas and beliefs and began to think independently about the true meaning of society and life. From 1576 to 1579, bacon lived in Paris as the attache of the British ambassador to France. During this time, he almost traveled all over France, which made him exposed to many new things and absorbed many new ideas. 1579, when his father died suddenly, Bacon hurried back to China.
Father didn't leave much money, so Bacon, who was used to luxury food, soon got into trouble. He asked the then ruler for an official, but there was no news. So he entered the Grey Society to study law, and 1582 was admitted as a lawyer. The following year, he was elected as a member of parliament and was re-elected several times. Although the congressman was not paid, he used this platform to give a speech and show his eloquence, which made him complacent. 1589 obtained the alternate right of the conference secretary of the headquarters, and it took many years to formally fill this position. During Queen Elizabeth's time, Bacon was undoubtedly a loser. After King James ascended the throne, Bacon's luck finally turned and his career was smooth. /kloc-was knighted in 0/603, and became the king's legal adviser the following year; 1607 became the deputy attorney general; 16 13 was promoted to the attorney general; 16 17 became the minister in charge of seals, and the following year became the chief justice with the title of.
Just as the spring breeze was in full swing, a great event happened to Bacon. 162 1 year, Congress accused Justice Bacon of taking bribes. Bacon admitted that bribery was true, but argued that he insisted on handling the case according to law and did not favor anyone because he got benefits. Finally, he was found guilty, fined 40,000 pounds and imprisoned in the Tower of London. He shall not go near the imperial court for life, nor shall he hold any official position again. Although a few days later, the king was exempted from fines and imprisonment, Bacon faded out of politics. At that time, bribery was prevalent in British officialdom, and almost every judge accepted gifts, including both the original defendant and the defendant. Therefore, Bacon said that he was "infected by the bad habits of the times" and that "it was not only me but also the times that committed this crime". In addition, he also realized the special significance behind the case, so he warned James: "Those who attack your judge now may also attack your crown in the future." Later scholars believe that Bacon was actually a victim of the struggle between the British Parliament and the monarchy. In any case, bacon failed to get rid of the dirt, at least it was a stain. But Bacon was forced to give up his official career and concentrate on writing books from now on, which was a bad thing and turned it into a good thing.
Bacon's personality is multifaceted, and his genius is also manifested in many aspects. He is a politician, lawyer, philosopher, writer and scientist. Bacon doesn't aim at the apprentice. Whether he is proud or frustrated, he always insists on writing and thinking.
Before the Renaissance, scholasticism was always in a dominant position, and many scholastics sat and talked about Taoism, divorced from reality, and turned the ideological achievements of the ancients into dogmas that bound academic progress. In this regard, bacon intends to bend straight. In the preface of "New Tools", he said that he would "open up a new road for understanding, which the ancients had never walked through and didn't know", that is, he would establish a scientific knowledge system at a new starting point.
In On Academic Progress, Bacon defined the knowledge field with overgrown weeds, and proposed a new scientific classification principle and a new knowledge system structure. He believes that human spiritual ability can be divided into three kinds: memory, imagination and rationality, so science, as a specific spiritual activity of human beings, should also be divided into history, poetry and philosophy (history includes natural history, political history, church history and academic history, poetry includes narrative poetry, drama poetry and fable poetry, and philosophy includes natural philosophy, human philosophy and natural theology). Since people's spiritual ability is inseparable, science must be a unified knowledge system. Bacon pointed out that there are two paths to truth or knowledge. One path is from the senses and special things to the principle of universality, that is, to find some axioms through principle judgment; The other way is to deduce some principles from the senses and special things, and finally reach the universal principles through gradual and uninterrupted rise.
Bacon attached great importance to scientific experiments and methods, telling us that "light candles first, and then light the road by candlelight". He emphasized scientific induction in New Tools, pointing out that induction is an appropriate method to find out axioms and concepts from things, and it is also an important tool for correct thinking and exploring truth. He advocated engaging in scientific work, neither weaving a web from his stomach like a spider nor collecting and using it like an ant. But to collect materials from flowers like bees and digest them in order to brew sweet honey. Bacon's point of view is very original, but he attaches importance to induction and despises deduction, and pays insufficient attention to the latest scientific achievements at that time, so his philosophy is not perfect in many places. Nevertheless, Russell still praised him as the founder of modern induction, a pioneer in logically organizing scientific research procedures and an immortal position in the history of philosophy.
As the creator of the motto "knowledge is power", Bacon fully affirmed and praised the role and value of knowledge. In his view, knowledge is not only the driving force to make the country strong and realize the self-improvement of human nature, but more importantly, knowledge is the power to know and control nature. Therefore, in his view, even in ancient times, the significance of scientific and technological inventions was far above the monarch's civil and military. People regard inventors as gods, and only give heroes or demigods to founders, legislators and those who overthrow tyrants. This just reflects the wisdom of the ancients, because the achievements of monarchs are often only valid at one time and one place, while scientific and technological knowledge can transcend time and space and benefit mankind forever.
In addition to the above aphorisms, Bacon's Essays is also widely known and deeply loved by readers. This book fully expresses the author's profound understanding and incisive views on various phenomena in social life, and shows the author's writing style and charm. These articles are rich in words, concise, interesting, alert and elegant, calm and calm. This book has been very popular since its publication. The first edition of this book has only ten articles, the second edition has increased to 38 articles, and the last edition has 58 articles. Oliphant Smeaton praised this book as one of the few "world books", not written for one country, but for all nationalities; Not for one era, but for all eras.
The key to the popularity of Bacon's essays lies in their extremely high life wisdom. No matter what situation you are in, you can find something relevant to you in the book. Reading any one of them can inspire you. As far as reading is concerned, Bacon will tell you that reading makes a full man, reading history makes a wise man, reading poetry makes a wise man, mathematics makes a careful man, natural history makes a deep man, ethics makes a grave man, and logic and rhetoric make him able to contend. When you encounter difficulties, he will advise you: good luck is not without many fears and troubles, bad luck is not without many comforts and hopes; The virtue born of luck is temperance, and the virtue born of misfortune is perseverance. Ethically speaking, the latter is a greater virtue. When you doubt, he will enlighten you: doubt in your heart is like a bat in a bird, always flying in the dusk; Suspicion should be stopped, or at least restrained, because it will confuse people, alienate friends and disrupt affairs. For health preservation, his motto is: keeping calm and happy while eating, sleeping and exercising is one of the best secrets of health and longevity.
Compared with the popular "chicken soup for the soul", Bacon's essays are more nutritious and worthy of readers' careful taste.