The Advancement of Learning

Francis Bacon (1561 - 1626) was a British statesman and philosopher. Bacon is considered the originator of the essay. Bacon's threefold goals were to discover truth, to serve his country, and to serve his church. In 1584 Bacon joined Parliament. There is a theory that Bacon was the illegitimate son of Queen Elizabeth and Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester and that Elizabeth's other secret biological son was Robert Devereux, Earl of Essex whom the Queen forced Bacon to prosecute for treason. Bacon divides knowledge into reason, memory and imagination. He later discusses divine and secular knowledge. Divine knowledge comes form revelation and not reason. He further theorizes on the difference between scientific knowledge and the arts.