From Compendium Studii Philosophiae

1. Even though this quote described the problem with students in schools for philosophy, it made me think about myself and my educational journey throughout my life. Bacon stated that “their tenth to their twentieth year; boys too young to be able to know anything worth knowing, even though they were not already possessed with the aforesaid causes of human error” (Bacon, p. 4). Bacon argued that the young students are receiving the correct information or the best education due to the corruption of universities and religion. But this quote also demonstrates that whenever we are young and thought we knew everything, we were simply rejecting knowledge. I believe this is also a type of corruption in our minds: when we were presented something, and we conquered it with ease with our knowledge that was taught in school, we feel accomplished and proud. This proudness would blind us from challenging us to dig deeper into knowledge. This quote also inspired me that, even though some kids demonstrate higher intelligence in school, we are still young and barely understood anything; thus, it is okay to take the time and explore the deeper connections instead of chasing after recognition and accomplishments.
2. I agree when Bacon mentioned that “whosoever will glory in Aristotle’s science, he must needs learn it in its own native tongue, since false translations are everywhere, in theology as well as in philosophy” (Bacon, p5). I arrived at the same conclusion while reading the Diary of Lady Murasaki because the translations in the English version could not highlight the intricacies of Japanese poems, and some important information were missing. I realized this after spending hours doing research, while relying on my Japanese and Chinese skills. I compared almost three versions of the Diary of Lady Murasaki: Japanese, Chinese, and the English version. I noticed that some methods of Asian writing could look extremely awkward in English. At the same time, the poems could not reflect the rhymes, syllables and symbolism, which removed the artistic context of Asian poems.

1. Bacon proposed that “almost all men are basely blinded. These are boys who are inexperienced in the knowledge of themselves and of the world and of the learned languages, Greek and Hebrew” (Bacon, 4). Even though I agree, like I wrote earlier, that young men only scratched the surface of knowledge at school. Though I believe Bacon agrees with my statement, he also wanted to say that they would be masters of philosophy and theology if they understand the language of Hebrew or Greek. Though language is important in understanding the details of a person’s writing, what is the core that is missing between these European languages that are similar? If the difference between Japanese and English translation debases the quality of the poems, then what is missing in the essence of texts when translated between two European languages? To put it  bluntly, do we need a universal language from now on to capture the message clearly across, for the sake of every single detail?
2. Bacon pointed out that most things ruled by God’s wisdom are “now debased by the constitutions of lay Emperors” (Bacon, p.2) and that the religion “is torn by the deceit and fraud of unjust men” (Bacon, p. 2). Bacon believed that “Christians have discovered nothing worthy of those philosophers, nor can we even understand their wisdom; which ignorance of ours springs from this cause that our morals are worse than theirs” (Bacon, 3). Socrates, one of the most famous Greek philosophers who Bacon admired, was found guilty during the trial and was punished by death. Bacon’s take on philosophy is extreme in my opinion, because he idolized Greek philosophy. He then mentioned that “sin is incompatible with wisdom” (Bacon, p. 2). It doesn’t matter if you believe in nature or nurture, mistakes and sins bound to happen in a person’s life, especially when we were little, fragile, and susceptible to any information given to us. If sinning equals to losing wisdom, then who could possess wisdom? Going back to using Socrates as an example, he was found guilty in a public trial, but he was also viewed as wise by future generations and Bacon himself, wouldn’t that mean that sinning paves way to wisdom?

1. Is a universal language beneficial for societal wisdom?
2. Do words contaminate a person’s mind, forcing them to act for their desires?