Scientific Knowledge in Bacon Philosophy: Insights from Dialectical Materialism
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.57125/FP.2024.03.30.05Keywords:
Baconian philosophy, inductive reasoning, knowledge acquisition, progress of science, critical analysisAbstract
Francis Bacon occupies a central position in the history of the philosophy of science, representing a pivotal shift from medieval to early modern scientific thought. Therefore, in the contemporary context, understanding Bacon's philosophy is crucial for appreciating the foundations of modern science and its ongoing evolution. The purpose of the article is to examine the enduring relevance of Francis Bacon's philosophy of science, particularly in the context of his emphasis on empirical methodology, experimentation, and the socio-cultural dimensions of scientific knowledge. By analyzing Bacon's contributions, the study aims to elucidate his methodological innovations and their implications for contemporary scientific practice and theory. The work uses thematic and comparative analysis to determine the role of F. Bacon's philosophy in the analysis of the concept of knowledge.The research highlights Bacon's seminal contributions to the philosophy of science, emphasizing his advocacy for empirical methodology, systematic experimentation, and the socio-cultural context of scientific inquiry. By critiquing the methodological limitations of scholastic philosophy and advocating for a methodological overhaul grounded in experience and observation, Bacon laid the groundwork for modern experimental science. In the conclusion, his integration of dialectical materialism and interdisciplinary perspectives underscores the significance of collective scientific endeavor and the foundational role of natural history in establishing the ontological basis of scientific knowledge. By elucidating Bacon's vision for a science that serves the general welfare of society, the study underscores the continued importance of his insights for addressing contemporary challenges and advancing scientific knowledge for the betterment of humanity.
References
Anderson, W. (2022). History and philosophy of science takes form. Studies in History and Philosophy of Science, 93, 175–182. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.shpsa.2022.04.001
Anstey, P. R. (2014). Philosophy of Experiment in Early Modern England: The Case of Bacon, Boyle and Hooke. Early Science and Medicine, 19(2), 103–132. https://doi.org/10.1163/15733823-00192p01
Bacon, F. (2003). Francis Bacon: the new Organon (L. Jardine & M. Silverthorne, Eds.). Cambridge University Press.
Bacon, F. (2016). New Atlantis and The Great Instauration (J. Weinberger, Ed. 2nd ed.). Wiley-Blackwell. https://www.wiley.com/en-us/New+Atlantis+and+The+Great+Instauration%2C+2nd+Edition-p-9781119098010
Bevery, J. (2020). Moral Philosophy: A Contemporary Introduction. Teaching Ethics, 20(1), 172–174. https://doi.org/10.5840/tej20202012
Breda, S. (2024). Materialism and dialectics. In Marx: Key Concepts (pp. 16–31). Edward Elgar Publishing. https://doi.org/10.4337/9781800880764.00007
Brown, S. (2023). Renaissance philosophy outside Italy. In The Renaissance and 17th Century Rationalism (pp. 70–103). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003419532-3
Cassan, E. (2021). “A New Logic”: Bacon’s Novum Organum. Perspectives on Science, 29(3), 255-274. https://doi.org/10.1162/posc_a_00368
Çimen, Ü. (2019). Francis Bacon and the Relation between Theology and Natural Philosophy. Synthesis philosophica, 34(1), 105–123. https://doi.org/10.21464/sp34108
Do Minh Hop. (2018). The problem of subjectivity in modern Western philosophy, Journal of Philosophy, (1), 29–33.
Donaldson, I. M. L. (2016). Francis Bacon’s comments on the power of negative observations in his Novum Organum, first published in 1620. Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, 109(12), 459-460. https://doi.org/10.1177/0141076816675805
Fuller, S. (2023). Hearing the Call of Science: Back from Max Weber to Francis Bacon. In Evaluating Education: Normative Systems and Institutional Practices (pp. 67–91). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-36327-6_4
Gannon, M. J., Taheri, B., & Azer, J. (2022). Contemporary Research Paradigms and Philosophies. In Contemporary Research Methods in Hospitality and Tourism (pp. 5–19). Emerald Publishing Limited. https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-80117-546-320221002
Grant, E. (1994). Planets, Stars, & Orbs. The Medieval Cosmos 1200–1687. Cambridge University Press.
Hubbell, J. A., & Ryan, J. C. (2021). Environmental philosophy. In Introduction to the Environmental Humanities (pp. 109–128). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781351200356-7
Hunter, F. J. (2021). Theology and Science in the Thought of Ian Barbour: A Thomistic Evaluation for the Catholic Doctrine of Creation. The Lonergan Review, 12, 207–210. https://doi.org/10.5840/lonerganreview20211210
Hylton, P. (2010). Willard Van Orman Quine. Retrieved from: https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2010/entries/quine/
Jalobeanu, D. (2019). Francis Bacon on Sophists, Poets and Other Forms of Self-Deceit (Or, What Can the Experimental Philosopher Learn from a Theoretically Informed History of Philosophy?). In Experiment, Speculation and Religion in Early Modern Philosophy (pp. 8–35). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780429022463-2
Jalobeanu, D. (2021). On Metaphysics and Method, Or How to Read Francis Bacon’s Novum organum. Epistemology & Philosophy of Science, 58(3), 98–118. https://doi.org/10.5840/eps202158347
Jalobeanu, D. (2023). Francis Bacon and the practices of measurement. Annals of Science, 1–21. https://doi.org/10.1080/00033790.2023.2282772
Jamal Hamafaraj, N. (2022). The scientific knowledge is what it has and what it owes to religion. Journal of Kurdistani for Strategic Studies, (3). https://doi.org/10.54809/jkss.vi3.93
Kivotidis, D. (2024). A Dialectical Materialist Approach to Democracy. In The Dialectics of Democracy (pp. 35–77). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781032710884-4
Le Thi Huyen. (2020). F. Bacon with the project of Great Scientific Restoration, Journal of Philosophy, (2), 15–18.
Minazzi, F. (2022). Epistemology and the History of Science: The Problem of Historical Epistemology in the Italian Debate of the 20th Century (With Some Unpublished Documents). In Studies in Applied Philosophy, Epistemology and Rational Ethics (pp. 243–284). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-96332-3_13
Miner, R. (2023). Anti-System in the Philosophical Practice of Francis Bacon. International Journal of Philosophical Studies, 1–21. https://doi.org/10.1080/09672559.2023.2235370
Nguyen Huy Hoang. (2022). "The relationship between culture and social progress in F.Bacon's philosophy", Journal of Philosophy, (9), 18–22.
Páez Bonifaci, J. (2020). History as the Organon of Philosophy. Idealistic Studies, 50(2), 185–209. https://doi.org/10.5840/idstudies2020914120
Pérez-Ramos, A. (1988). Francis Bacon’s Idea of Science and the Maker's Knowledge Tradition. Clarendon Press.
Pérez-Ramos, A. (2023). Francis Bacon and man's two-faced kingdom. In The Renaissance and 17th Century Rationalism (pp. 140–166). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003419532-5
Priest, G. (2020). Philosophy and its History: An Essay in the Philosophy of Philosophy. Analytic Philosophy, 61(4), 297–303. https://doi.org/10.1111/phib.12190
Psaros, H. (2022). Learning, digital technologies, and sociomaterial approaches: A critical reflection from the perspective of materialist dialectics. Theory & Psychology, 095935432211292. https://doi.org/10.1177/09593543221129235
Remmling, G. W., & Remmling, G. W. (2022). Francis Bacon and the French Enlightenment philosophers. In Towards the Sociology of Knowledge (pp. 47–59). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003074359-4
Rózsa, G. (2019). CHAPTER I. The socio-historical evolution of scientific information problems. In Scientific Information and Society (pp. 5-40). De Gruyter Mouton. https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110809206-003
Rusu, D.-C. (2021). Francis Bacon and His Fate in the History and Philosophy of Science, 2010–2020. Epistemology & Philosophy of Science, 58(3), 206–220. https://doi.org/10.5840/eps202158353
Sawchuk, P. H. (2020). Dialectical materialist methodology for a mind-in-activity approach to work, learning and political economic consciousness. Studies in Continuing Education, 42(2), 148–162. https://doi.org/10.1080/0158037x.2020.1738372
Sharpe, M. (2019). Bacon. In Knowledge in Modern Philosophy. Bloomsbury Academic. https://doi.org/10.5040/9781474258463.ch-001
Skordoulis, C. (2022). Dialectical Materialism (Materialist Dialectics). In Encyclopaedia of Marxism and Education (pp. 186–202). BRILL. https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004505612_012
Verburgt, L. M. (2021). The Works of Francis Bacon: A Victorian Classic in the History of Science. Isis, 112(4), 717–736. https://doi.org/10.1086/717036
Werlin, J. (2020). Francis Bacon and the Art of Misinterpretation. PMLA/Publications of the Modern Language Association of America, 130(2), 236–251. https://doi.org/10.1632/pmla.2015.130.2.236
Zinner, E. (2008). Entstehung und Ausbreitung der copernicanischen Lehre, Munich. https://www.deutsche-digitale-bibliothek.de/item/UCEZGMGE3HMBM3KJRVCFZLTVUNLNPHPC
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2024 author

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
