Novum Organum

Lore & Background

The Novum Organum was published in 1620 by Francis Bacon as a scathing attack on the established logical tradition. Its title directly references Aristotle's Organon, the standard collection of six works on logical analysis and dialectic that had dominated intellectual life. Bacon's work was intended as Part II of the larger, unfinished Instauratio Magna.

The work itself consists of two books of aphorisms and was also left unfinished. The title page depicts a galleon passing between the Pillars of Hercules, symbolizing the exit from well-charted waters into the Atlantic, a metaphor for Bacon's hope that empirical investigation would smash old scientific ideas. The Latin tag across the bottom, 'Multi pertransibunt & augebitur scientia' (Many will travel and knowledge will be increased), is taken from Daniel 12:4.

In Book I, Bacon criticizes the current state of natural philosophy, particularly the syllogism, which he deems inadequate compared to 'true Induction.' He argues that induction must begin with particular cases observed by the senses and then discover general axioms, rather than rushing from sense and particulars to axioms of highest generality. Bacon presents his famous 'Idols'—Idols of the Tribe (rooted in human nature) and Idols of the Cave (stemming from individual experience)—as impediments that mislead objective reasoning. For Bacon, finding the essence of a thing involved a process of reduction and inductive reasoning, exemplified by his method of listing situations where a phenomenon (like heat) is found, where it is absent, and where it varies.

Reader's Guide

Bacon's work was instrumental in the historical development of the scientific method. His technique bears a resemblance to the modern formulation of the scientific method in that it is centered on experimental research. Bacon's emphasis on artificial experiments to provide additional observations is one reason he is often considered 'the Father of the Experimental Philosophy' (for example, by Voltaire).

However, the modern scientific method, being a pluralistic hodge-podge, does not follow Bacon's methods in its details, but more in the spirit of being 'methodical and experimental,' so his position in this regard can be disputed. Importantly, Bacon set the scene for science to develop various methodologies and ideologies by arguing against older Aristotelian approaches, contending that method was needed because of natural biases and weaknesses of the human mind, including its tendency to seek metaphysical explanations not based on real observations. His eliminative induction remains one of his most lasting contributions to science and philosophy.

Did You Know?

• Immanuel Kant thought there was nothing else to invent after the work of Aristotle.
• The logic historian Karl von Prantl claimed any logician who said anything new about logic was 'confused, stupid or perverse.'