Francis Bacon
Francis Bacon
Francis Bacon, 1st Viscount St Alban PC KCwas an English philosopher, statesman, scientist, jurist, orator, and author. He served both as Attorney General and as Lord Chancellor of England. After his death, he remained extremely influential through his works, especially as philosophical advocate and practitioner of the scientific method during the scientific revolution...
NationalityEnglish
ProfessionPhilosopher
Date of Birth21 January 1561
conference exact full reading ready
Reading makes a full man; conference a ready man; and writing an exact man.
books-and-reading fragments passages private records recover save somewhat time
Out of monuments, names, words, proverbs, traditions, private records and evidences, fragments of stories, passages of books, and the like, we do save and recover somewhat from the deluge of time
reading men
Reading maketh a full man.
reading writing men
Reading maketh a full man; and writing an axact man. And, therefore, if a man write little, he need have a present wit; and if he read little, he need have much cunning to seem to know which he doth not.
teacher military reading
Reading maketh a full man; conference a ready man; and writing an exact man.
inspirational book reading
Some books should be tasted, some devoured, but only a few should be chewed and digested thoroughly.
friends-or-friendship sincere solitude worst
The worst solitude is to be destitute of sincere friendship.
faculties fortunate fortune giving light men number rather scarce seen smaller
The way of fortune is like the milky way in the sky; which is a number of smaller stars, not seen asunder, but giving light together; so it is a number of little and scarce discerned virtues, or rather faculties and customs, that make men fortunate
man wise
The wise man will make more opportunities than he finds.
cannot discovery greater nature since subtlety suffice
Argumentation cannot suffice for the discovery of new work, since the subtlety of Nature is greater many times than the subtlety of argument.
adversity comforts fears prosperity
Prosperity is not without many fears and distastes; and adversity is not without comforts and hopes.
adversity comforts fears prosperity
Prosperity is not without many fears and distaste; adversity not without many comforts and hopes.
adversity best discover doth prosperity
Prosperity doth best discover vice; but adversity doth best discover virtue.
believe consider contradict histories men nor weigh
Read not to contradict and confute, nor to believe and take for granted, but to weigh and consider . . . Histories make men wise.