MY COMMENTS:
Despite being adorned with the most utilitarian and rational methods of its time and Western values, Francis Bacon's essays reveal an England in its developmental stage, still influenced by some outdated and meaningless medieval discourses.
With the Renaissance, rationality and a production-focused lifestyle became crucial, while religion was relegated to a controllable domain. Although most views were shaped this way, as seen especially in the footnotes, the influence of religion had not entirely diminished in the author and society. From this perspective, it is evident that Europe was still internally conflicted; on one hand, the horizon of innovative and positive sciences had begun to expand, but on the other hand, it had not completely rid itself of the vulgarity and fanaticism inherited from the Middle Ages.
Moreover, though rarely mentioned, Turkish and Eastern civilizations are almost non-existent in the book. Comparisons extending only to the Eastern Roman Empire might either be a deliberate filtering method by the author or stem from the belief that the small cycle within Continental Europe maintained the foundations of the entire world.
Although many deficiencies of the West before the Renaissance are evident, the significance of science due to advancements in positive sciences in the new era should not be overlooked. However, as seen, the West has never fully grasped the intricate and layered belief systems of the East. Therefore, philosophical thoughts were mostly confined to a few pragmatic and materialistic templates.
The most important message for the Eastern world from this work is that the only tool Eastern civilizations should incorporate from the West is science. Trying to imitate the West in other matters will trigger identity crises and subsequently solidify nobility issues, resulting in the most impactful aspect of being left behind the West: witnessing the struggles of countries unable to escape this situation.
In conclusion, it must be noted that this work is one of the important thought pieces containing significant information about its era and should definitely be examined.
MY QUOTES(*):
1. "He who takes revenge becomes equal with his enemy, but in passing it over, he is superior, for it is a prince's part to pardon."
2. "The best composition and temperature is to have openness in fame and opinion, secrecy in habit, dissimulation in seasonable use, and a power to feign, if there be no remedy."
3. "Parents ought, in good time, to find for their children fit and proper occupations, and not to leave the decision thereof to the children’s own inclinations."
4. "The great parts of the world have a greater influence upon the lesser than the lesser parts do upon the greater."
5. "Certainly, custom is most perfect when it beginneth in young years: this we call education, which is, in effect, but an early custom."
6. "The Turks have at the present time a policy to keep their people from too much knowledge; which, amongst them, chiefly consisteth in the law of their prophets."
7. "The expense of care and labor is oftentimes greater than that of the material, as is found in the case of the Netherlands, who have won a greater benefit from their works of draining and transportation, than from the riches of the earth."
8. "Prosperity doth best discover vice, but adversity doth best discover virtue."
9. "The greatest trust between man and man is the trust of giving counsel."
10. "All rising to great place is by a winding stair."
11. "The virtue of prosperity is temperance; the virtue of adversity is fortitude, which in mortals is the more heroical virtue."
12. "Young men are fitter to invent than to judge; fitter for execution than for counsel; and fitter for new projects than for settled business."
13. "Judges ought to remember that their office is to interpret law, and not to make law or give law."
MY EVALUATIONS
Topic: The Western world during the Renaissance is evaluated by an English author, along with significant observations about the era's Western world.
Style: The author generally uses a short and concise narrative style. However, some sentences are long to elaborate on the elements he wants to emphasize, which doesn't negatively affect the flow.
Originality: Not applicable due to the nature of the work.
Characters: Not applicable due to the nature of the work.
Flow: Given the style mentioned, the book effectively conveys its messages with a fluent narrative. However, it is not a thrilling read due to its genre.
Overall: Based on the above criteria, the book scores:
- Topic: 8
- Style: 8
- Flow: 7.5
The overall score is 7.8, making it a must-read for essay writers interested in medieval Europe.
All sections under the Quotes
heading are from the book "Essays" by Francis Bacon, published by Yapı ve Kredi Yayınları, 16th Edition, January 2019.
(Translation of this page made by ChatGPT
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