Bacon, Francis

¹

1. An English politician, scientist, and author of the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries; one of the leaders of the Renaissance in England . ( See also under “Literature in English.” )

Bacon, Francis

²

1. An English author of the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries. Bacon is known in philosophy for his defense of the scientific method ( see Baconian method ). In literature, he is known for his essays ; they contain such memorable thoughts as “Reading maketh a full man, conference a ready man, and writing an exact man.”

Notes

Bacon has sometimes been mentioned as a possible author of the plays commonly attributed to William Shakespeare .