Document Type : Scientific-research
Author
Associate Professor, Department of Philosophy, Faculty of Literature and Humanities, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran.
Abstract
Francis Bacon's ideas, as one of the harbingers of modern science, have been the source of many philosophical reflections in various philosophical fields, especially in the field of practical philosophy and questions related to ethics and law. With his ideal plan of the future world, which is based on humans achieving the greatest blessings in life and its image is depicted in works such as The New Atlantis, Bacon tried to formulate a program for industrial intervention and technical productivity of nature, through which the deficiencies and deprivations of human life, such as war, poverty and disease, would be eliminated and, with the return of human authority, the ground would be prepared for the achievement of an earthly paradise without violence and suffering for human beings, in which all of nature is at the service of human welfare. However, this ideal plan has aroused serious criticism from critics because it has caused countless human and environmental disasters in the modern era. By criticizing Bacon's ideal of sovereignty and dominance over nature, Hans Jonas has called on modern societies to abandon this ideal and deal responsibly with nature in order to preserve and protect it. Because this ideal has made the technical use of nature in order to achieve good and benefit for human life and to lay the groundwork for his sovereignty as a principle and has had an optimistic view of the ideal of an earthly paradise, while it has not paid attention to its negative consequences, including the separation of man from nature and his sovereignty over nature. Therefore, this approach must be changed and turned from anthropocentrism to physiocentrism and modern man, as a moral agent, must comply with the imperative of responsibility towards nature, which entails both moral and legal obligations towards nature. This article, by addressing some opinions on Bacon's ideal, shows that a distinction must be made between his ideal and his program to better understand its positive and negative consequences.
Keywords
- Francis Bacon
- New Atlantis
- Bacon’s Ideal
- nature
- knowledge & technic
- the imperative of responsibility
Main Subjects
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