Observation and Truth

We live in a world where we have literally just about every piece of information that we could need in the palm of our hands.  (Literally. We all have smartphones).  And not only that, but the information that we can find is usually valid and has some sort of evidence to support it.  This practice of having information that is backed by evidence is a product of the Enlightenment period, which has greatly shaped the world that we live in today.

Before this time period, of course individuals sought growth and learning.  After all, that’s what the Renaissance was all about.  However, it was during the Enlightenment that people started looking for validity in the information flowing around.  

There was a man by the name of Francis Bacon in this time period of the Enlightenment who was known for being a philosopher over the scientific method.  He is well-known for his thoughts regarding observation and truth. He made the following statement

“Man, being the servant and interpreter of Nature, can do and understand so much and so much only as he has observed in fact or in through of the course of nature.  Beyond this he neither knows anything nor can do anything.”


This quote marks a crucial turning point where people began looking to science for answers.  It was no longer as common to accept thoughts and theories without any evidence or observation.  This was a huge leap in progress for the world, and because of it, we have access to so much free flowing information that can be validated through evidence.

Image credit: by Frans Pourbus 

But, What Do You Do?

Sir Francis Bacon ended his public life as a disgrace. In the end he was pardoned by the king, but we don’t mention his criminal record when we quote him or celebrate his achievements. I’ve gone 26 years hearing all kinds of things about the man and how his work led to society as we know it, and I’m just now learning that as one of the most powerful government officials in England he was taking bribes. It wasn’t even just accusations fabricated for some power grab; he admitted being guilty.

Reading about his thoughts and his life, I was tempted to forget it. Many of his important ideas don’t at all seem new because they are so woven into how we look at the world. But, if he’d been a politician today, we’d have had the same reaction they did back then. The only difference being that there would be no king’s pardon at the end of his punishments. Anything important thing he would have said would have been tainted.

But, we don’t think that way about him because of everything he did. The episode Up in Smoke from Aaron Mahnke’s Cabinet of Curiosities tells the story of how even at the end of his life he helped discover how the cold can preserve meat (great story). The man even helped invent the reason why we can have grocery store chains. Do we continue to hold him accountable as a corrupt politician? Or do we let him off? And what does that answer say about our modern political climate?

Image credit to wikimedia.org