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Of Studies – Francis Bacon – Complete Explanation
by Francis Bacon
Complete explanation of the essay alongside the original text
Studies serve for delight, for ornament, and for ability.
Explanation
Study as an activity, in whatever form, brings us joy and enhances our thinking, speaking and writing ability adding charm to our personality.
Their chief use for delight is in privateness and retiring; for ornament, is in discourse; and for ability, is in the judgment and disposition of business.
Study is always a private activity which people engage in when they are alone or in the privacy of their homes. It helps them in relaxation after a strenuous routine, when the body and mind need to slow down. It sharpens our intellect helping us to judge things soundly. It helps us to go about our life’s business in a more capable way.
For expert men can execute, and perhaps judge of particulars, one by one; but the general counsels, and the plots and marshalling of affairs, come best from those that are learned.
It enables the learned men, who have studied extensively, to critically examine issues, and arrive at the right conclusion. They can garner data, facts and arguments or against a particular view rationally. Such intelligent analysis of facts improves the soundness and quality of their judgment.
To spend too much time in studies is sloth; to use them too much for ornament, is affectation; to make judgment wholly by their rules, is the humor of a scholar.
However, over-indulgence in studies leads to undesirable consequences. Setting aside long hours in a day to study will make a man indolent. Overuse of the wisdom to analyze ordinary commonplace issues may make the man appear pretentious and vainglorious. Sticking too much to rules to asses situations and decide on action may invite derision from others.
They perfect nature, and are perfected by experience: for natural abilities are like natural plants, that need pruning, by study; and studies themselves do give forth directions too much at large, except they be bounded in by experience.
Studying adds finesse and perfection to human nature. Experiences in life supplements such honing of nature. A person’s abilities inherited by birth are raw. Only when they are carefully worked upon and honed, the in-born abilities yield the best benefits to us. Studying is the whetstone that we use to sharpen our abilities. But inferences from study may lead to imprecise and misleading conclusions. In such situations, one’s experience in life comes in handy to arrive at the right conclusion. So, experience is very valuable as it supplements studies.
Crafty men condemn studies, simple men admire them, and wise men use them; for they teach not their own use; but that is a wisdom without them, and above them, won by observation.
People who are cunning and deceitful have no appreciation for studies as they accomplish their objectives through many crooked ways. Simple folks, however, greatly value the role of studies in human life. Wise people inherently draw upon the ideas obtained from their studies while solving life’s myriad problems.
Read not to contradict and confute; nor to believe and take for granted; nor to find talk and discourse; but to weigh and consider.
The aim of reading and acquiring knowledge must not be to aggressively refute other’s views or accept the writer’s views as gospel truth. It should also not be to engage in pointless discussion and argumentation. Studying should enable us to weigh facts and analyze them rationally.
Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested; that is, some books are to be read only in parts; others to be read, but not curiously; and some few to be read wholly, and with diligence and attention.
Books of varying content and genre are to be made use of differently. Some may be given a cursory reading, some others can be quickly sifted through. Other important books are to be read slowly and minutely so as to truly fathom the meaning and underlying sense.
Some books also may be read by deputy, and extracts made of them by others; but that would be only in the less important arguments, and the meaner sort of books, else distilled books are like common distilled waters, flashy things.
One can ask an assistant to read a book and prepare a short summary of it. But such practice should be followed for obtaining guidance on matters of lesser importance. There are some books which are, in fact, shortened already.
Reading maketh a full man; conference a ready man; and writing an exact man. Reading adds perfection to a man’s personality.
Discussing with others about the contents of a book imparts special practical skills to the reader. Writing removes all the residual weaknesses and ignorance from the person and enables him to remember the contents of a book.
And therefore, if a man write little, he had need have a great memory; if he confer little, he had need have a present wit: and if he read little, he had need have much cunning, to seem to know that he doth not.
So, writing helps to memorize facts. If a person is bashful so as not to discuss his reading with others, he will not be able to improve his wit. If he does not read, he will remain a somewhat stupid person.
Histories make men wise; poets witty; the mathematics subtle; natural philosophy deep; moral grave; logic and rhetoric able to contend.
Studying history makes a man wiser, studying poetry makes a man wittier: mathematics gives sound logical sense, and philosophy imparts valuable lessons on morality.
Abeunt studia in mores [Studies pass into and influence manners]. Nay, there is no stond or impediment in the wit but may be wrought out by fit studies; like as diseases of the body may have appropriate exercises.
Wit is a god-given gift. It is present in everybody. However, it can be sharpened by selective studying. This is akin to the way certain weaknesses of the human body are cured by appropriate physical exercises.
Bowling is good for the stone and reins; shooting for the lungs and breast; gentle walking for the stomach; riding for the head; and the like. They cure many ailments.
So if a man’s wit be wandering, let him study the mathematics; for in demonstrations, if his wit be called away never so little, he must begin again.
If a person is unable to concentrate, he will do well to study mathematics to focus his wavering mind. In mathematics, a slight loss of concentration leads to grave error.This makes the man to start all over again to do it. Thus, studying mathematics restrains the mind from darting off elsewhere.
If his wit be not apt to distinguish or find differences, let him study the Schoolmen; for they are cymini sectores [splitters of hairs].
If a person does not have the ability to discern, he will be benefited by studying Schoolmen as it trains mental ability and develops the art of expression.
If he be not apt to beat over matters, and to call up one thing to prove and illustrate another, let him study the lawyers’ cases.So every defect of the mind may have a special receipt.
If a person is unable to garner facts and manipulate them to put across his views convincingly, studying law will help him. Thus, every deficiency of mind can be addressed by appropriate reading.
Click here for explanations of more essays by Francis Bacon.
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Very helpful …..lot of thanks
Thank you for your kind comment.
This way of explanation is very useful
Thank you, Nageswari.
It’s too helpful Thanks for this… Small request Plz do upload ‘of friendship’ by Bacon
Click on this. https://www.englishcharity.com/of-friendship-by-bacon/
Where is simulation and dissimulation
very helpful…….thank you.
Is great. Thanks a lot
How according to francis bacon studies provide wisdom won by obserwation
Question for all essays sir ji prose subject ka subjective paper kia type ka hota h mid term ka or final ka
It is amazing the way you explained the way I am now a follower of this website
Of Studies | Francis Bacon |Summary and Analysis | Questions
Table of Contents
Of Studies – Summary
Francis Bacon’s classic essay “Of Studies” explains how and why study—knowledge—is important. In this essay, he discusses some of the benefits of studying and offers some sound ideas on the subject.
Bacon is regarded as the “Father of the English Essay”. Bacon envisioned the essay as an opportunity to offer advice. The title of his essay collection: “Essays or Counsels: Civil and Moral,” suggests that didactic intent.
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In “Of Studies,” Bacon explains the practical value of knowledge. Bacon considers how studies might be put to use. He is more interested in their practical utility than in their theoretical promise, a proclivity that is perhaps more English than French. In “Of Studies,” Bacon’s writing is direct and pointed. It avoids Montaigne’s essays’ meandering, find-your-own-way free form. Bacon gets right to the point in his first sentence: “Studies serve for delight, ornament, and ability.” He then goes on to explain how studies can help in these three ways. And he doesn’t mince words when describing the use of “studies” for a Renaissance gentleman.
One of the essay’s main draws is Bacon’s skillful use of parallel sentence structure, which is evident in the opening sentence and throughout “Of Studies.” This stylistic technique adds clarity and order to the writing, as in “crafty men condemn studies, simple men admire them, and wise men use them,” which demonstrates confidence and elegance in addition to clarity and emphasis through its straightforward assertiveness.
Studies are a source of pleasure. They have ornamental value and also improve one’s ability.
A man who lives a life of aloofness and retirement is best suited to enjoy the pleasures of study. Study has a ornamental value in that it enables a man to become a good talker. A student who devotes too much time to his studies becomes temporarily sluggish. Whoever tries to make a show of his knowledge by reading excessively for conversational purposes is wasting his time. It reveals a man’s eccentricity if his judgement is entirely based on rules he has learned from books.
Studies allow you to easily develop your skills and abilities. Studies provide guidance on their own, but this is abstract without practical experience. The studies are disliked by cunning men, but they are admired by simple men. Men who are fundamentally wise use studies to advance in life.
One should not read books solely to contradict others. Everything written in a book should not be followed in real life. One should think about what he reads and how he applies it.
Some books should only be read in sections. Some of them can be read quickly and hurriedly. Only a few books are worth paying attention to and studying in depth. In the case of some books, a man may hire someone else to read them for him and then tell him what they contain as well as give him excerpts. However, this method should only be used with the simplest of books. A simple summary or synopsis of a good book is insufficient for any man.
Reading helps a man develop his entire personality. A man’s wit is developed through conversation. The reader is affected differently by different types of books. History makes a man a wise man. Poetry develops a man’s imagination, while mathematics develops his subtlety, Natural science enables a man to look, deep into the things, Logic and art of public speaking develop a person’s communicative skills.
Effective and useful reading fosters the development of a variety of skills. If a man’s mind wonders too much, he should be made to study Mathematics to develop concentration; if a man is unable to make distinctions between things, he should study Middle Ages literature.
Studies are a treatment for mental illness. Mathematics is good for wondering wits in the same way that bowling is good for kidneys, shooting is good for lungs, walking is good for digestion, and riding is good for the head. Every mental defect in a man can be cured through studies
Critical Analysis
This essay discusses various types of books and their effects on the reader. Bacon divides the uses of studies into three categories: the use of studies for delight, the use of studies for ornament, and the use of studies for ability. Bacon also provides some excellent advice on why and how to read. He claims that different studies have different effects on the human mind.
Various kinds of studies can help to correct a variety of mental flaws. The importance of experience in supplementing and perfecting studies is duly emphasised in the essay. Bacon would not be satisfied with more bookish knowledge. The wisdom gained through experience is just as important as the wisdom gained through reading books.
But ideas aren’t the only thing that matters in this essay. Bacon demonstrates his talent for expressing his ideas with the least amount of words possible. The essay is a masterwork of concision and brevity. His sentences have a proverbial feel to them.
Bacon’s essays abound in very appropriate and original similes. We have one such simile here when Bacon says that “distilled books are, like common distilled waters, flashy things”.
It is, without a doubt, one of the best English prose essays ever written. It provides us with a number of sound maxims and sentences that we can quote when the situation calls for it. Some of the sentences do, in fact, stick in our heads without any conscious effort on our part. Bacon’s essay is one of his most well-known works.
Questions and Answers
You must have understood Bacon’s ideas about studies. You must have understood the uses and disadvantages of study. You have also come to know about rules and modes of study.
Exercise – 1
Now answer the following questions by choosing the correct answer from the three alternatives given below each question.
1. Bacon’s essay entitled Of Studies is a passage to be:
(i) chewed and digested
(ii) read with main points
(iii) studied thoroughly Answer: i) chewed and digested
2. One who makes too much use of his readings for conversational purposes makes:
(i) things haphazard
(ii) vain display of his learnings
(iii) proper use of books Answer: (ii) vain display of his learning
3. One should take extracts from :
(i) books of high value
(ii) meaner sort of books
(iii) remedial books Answer: (ii) meaner sort of books
4. Books worth a closer and thorough reading :
(i) are smaller in number
(ii) are written by famous writers
(iii) are text books Answer: (i) are smaller in number
5. Logic and rhetoric develops :
(i) man’s debating powers
(ii) man’s thinking power
(iii) man’s power to interact Answer: (i) man’s debating powers
Exercise – 2
Now try to answer the following questions in sentences of your own :
1. What type of books are to be chewed and digested? Answer: The books which have knowledgeable contents should be read thoroughly and understood properly.
2. What do you think is the proper use of study? Answer: We study for personal enjoyment and for cultivation of social charm through the cultivation of the power of exposition in speech and to develop ability for judgment of facts and circumstances.
3. What is the use of the study of natural philosophy? Answer: It enables the reader to understand things in a better way and reach to the depth of subject matter.
4. How can a man acquire ability to perfection? Answer: It can be acquired when knowledge gained from books is supplemented with practical experience.
5. For what we should not read books? Answer: One should not read books to contradict others.
Now try to answer the following questions :
1. How did Bacon classify the books? Answer: Bacon classified books under three major categories. Some books are for personal enjoyment, others are to be read to develop conversational qualities and some others are to develop power of judgment.
2. What are special qualities of this essay? Answer: Some of these qualities are maximum economy of words, straight forward presentation, brevity, terseness and use of sentences as proverbs.
3. Comment on the theme of this essay. Answer: Bacon tries to discover fundamental principles of conduct influence and actions of men.
4. Discuss the peculiarity of structure of this essay. Answer: Each sentence is carefully selected and strung together. The essay shows brevity and compactness.
5. Discuss the main qualities of Bacon’s style. Answer: The essay of Bacon is compressed, full of condensed thought and utterly devoid of ornamentation. The sentences in the paragraph run smooth.
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