Evaluation of One of the Writings of Francis Bacon free essay sample

Discussing reading and how to properly do it, he says, â€Å"Read not to contradict and confute, nor to believe and take for granted, nor to find talk and discourse, but to weigh to consider. † Whenever reading any kind of material, the words and knowledge should not just be observed. Previous knowledge must be used to consider the reading, think about what it is saying, and then one can decide what to do with the new knowledge. Bacon clearly states that reading, conferencing, and writing will create a better, wiser man. Without one of these key aspects, a person will be unbalanced because all three are necessary to create a well-rounded mind. His closing sentence, which states, â€Å"So every defect of the mind may have a special receipt,† is one to really think about. Bacon’s point here is that everyone has weaknesses of the mind, and we must be constantly fixing and working to improve upon them. We will write a custom essay sample on Evaluation of One of the Writings of Francis Bacon or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page This very short, yet concise essay of Bacon’s is a prime example of why he is known as the father of the English essay. Analysis The topic of Francis Bacon’s essay â€Å"Of Studies† is to explain the importance of knowledge and its practical uses. His thesis, which is his first sentence, states, â€Å"Studies serve for delight, for ornament, and for ability. The following sentences give details on each of these three ideas, and explain why studies serve for these three purposes. The title â€Å"Of Studies† is short and straight to the point about what the essay will include. Looking at the title, it indicates that this will be an informative essay providing advice and information about studies. There are no opening or concluding paragraphs in this essay, or even opening or concluding sentences. Instead it immediately begins with the thesis statements and body paragraphs. The tone of this essay is very formal and informative, with no personal experiences or stories included. He uses logic to make many of his points, often using parallel sentence structure to make his ideas clearer to the reader. The audience of this essay is anyone who is interested in the uses of knowledge, or wants another way of looking at studies to broaden their viewpoint. The implied conclusion to this essay is that studies have a part to our lives, but we must learn to apply them properly. Evaluation Reading this essay from a 21st Century viewpoint changes the evaluation of Francis Bacon’s essay. Written some time after 1597, the writing style and ideas of that age are very different from ours today. Nevertheless, Francis Bacon is still considered one of the best essay writers of all time. This essay, if rewritten in modern day English, would be quite easy to comprehend. It is of course a bit more difficult because of the challenging words and different ways of phrasing things. Bacon does do a good job of making his points clear, especially through parallel sentence structure. Most of his sentences are straight to the point; there are no extra phrases to bring in the reader’s attention. The topic of â€Å"studies† is not a very argumentative one, and with Bacon’s supreme use of logic and clear statements, it’s a very persuasive essay. He does not leave much to be questioned. The essay does, however, lack some interesting details or eye-catching phrases. One will find himself or herself having to read some of the sentences several times before their true meaning sinks in. Written as one big long paragraph, it looks as though there is not much organization to Bacon’s writing. Once one begins to read, its clear how Bacon moves through his topics sentence by sentence with good fluency. There is no climax or final statement; each statement in this essay as important as another.