How would you explain the fact that Bacon’s essays never fail to attract readers?
Ans.
There are certain periods in the world’s history which have a special attraction for any students of the intellectual and moral development of mankind. In an age when belief in age-old mythology was being shattered and tradition, authority, and custom were no longer accepted as adequate sanctions for moral rules and political institutions, Bacon’s Essays reflected the sentiments and attitudes that he found towards life and time of his age. In other words, Bacon o t sport ap su (9391-1951) The essays are on human nature, on thoughts, art, and society and the state. Categorically speaking, the text, style, and structure of Bacon’s essays may be found in miniature the most serious concerns of one of the greatest intellects of the renaissance period. The essays, for example, Of Truth, of Marriage and Single Life, and Plantations illustrate the qualities of life that he seems to value. The essay Of Truth shows Bacon’s keen observations of human beings. The remark that love of lies is inherent in human beings may sound cynical but is nevertheless undeniable. This essay expresses Bacon’s moralistic learning that is his prudential attitude to life. In this essay, he argued that truth is important not only in theological and philosophical fields but also in day-to-day life. Even those who do not practice truthfulness themselves, admit that honest and straightforward dealing denotes nobility. A mixture of truth and falsehood helps in succeeding materially but it debases while it strengthens. The essay Of Marriage and Single Life deals with the subject of popular interests. Marriage is a human experience and such a topic is bound to appeal even to a common man. Bacon puts forward a balance sheet of assets and liabilities of married and single life. Each has its advantages and disadvantages. Bacon’s approach to the institutions of marriage was somewhat utilitarian. Marriage makes a man do better in certain spheres of work and has detrimental effects in other spheres. In Of Love Bacon took the pragmatic point of view in treating the subject “love”. According to him, love is the result of human folly, If a man cannot resist love, he should keep it within limits and keep it apart and isolated from the serious affairs of his life. If love is allowed to interfere with serious business, it will play havoc on man’s future and the defeat of his fate. The essay Of Plantations bears the testimony of the fact that Bacon was aware of his age and the demands of the time. In this essay, he emphasized that plantations are among the ‘ancient, primitive, and heroic works’. Here he discussed the processes and methods of plantation in detail. He also suggested to the administrators how to make the plantation more useful for a growing nation. To conclude: it is seen that the essays of Bacon reflect his keen interests in the detail of life. In doing so, he highlighted some idiosyncrasies of life that he seems to value, Another feature of Bacon is that these essays characterize the values and norms of the time.
