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The New Atlantis

or the manipulation of science
An excellent article on an interpretation of The New Atlantis, appeared on a website from Kenyon College (Ohio, U.S.A.) by Sarah Stella, Caitlin Horrocks, Sarah Schaff and Jess Spalter, here given with some amendments by the present author. More information on Francis Bacon and his tale is to be found in the last article on the Ascent of Man & Science.

Francis Bacon wrote The New Atlantis in 1624 and it was published after his death in 1627. Unlike some of Bacons other works, he intended the tale for a widespread, english-speaking audience. To this effect it was first written in English and then only Bacon translated it into Latin (Berneri 129). In The New Atlantis, Francis Bacon continues the utopian tradition in the same vein as Thomas More. In fact, there was a paucity of utopian literature for nearly a century following the appearance of Mores Utopia (Hertzler 146), which The New Atlantis helped to dissipate. However, in many ways, Bacons utopia is highly dissimilar to Mores. Bacon was the first philosopher to suggest the improvement of society through the scientific pursuit. In previous utopias, this renovation was to be achieved through social legislation, religious reforms or the spreading of knowledge (Berneri 127). The work is Bacons dream of compensation, a joining of science and power (Berneri 128). Thus Bacon views the secrets hidden in nature as a means that government can employ for the betterment of man. The illusion, present in the work, arises out of getting to know those secrets, which is science, for the betterment of society. Bacons view of the essential desires of human beings is highly Machiavellian. In the tale he implies that human greed, which stems from bodily desires, is not something against which to fight. In Bensalem, the House of Solomon finds ways to appease wants through material means, made possible by extraordinary scientific advances. Bacon sees no need for humans to aspire toward fewer desires as Plato, Aristotle and the other ancients do. Coaxing humans into a higher moral state seems like an utter waste of energy. To this end Bacon presents an illusion of the good society. The beautiful and happy Bensalem has a notably ugly side. Some things I may tell you, which I think you will not be unwilling to hear. The governor of the house of strangers, a priest by calling, just has spoken this before telling the story of the Bensalemites conversion to Christianity. Through this speech, Bacon strongly suggests that the Christian conversion of the Bensalemites was a plot orchestrated by the House of Solomon. This raises an interesting question: what would Bensalem want with Christianity? Traditionally, Christianity represents ideals which are the antithesis of those which the Bensalemites embrace. It prods people to try to achieve a more divine level of morality. Yet, in a decidedly anti-Christian way the Father of Solomons House seems to say that the eventual goal of the countrys scientists is to achieve, by their accomplishments, the power of a divinity, termed elsewhere the kingdom of heaven. Says the Father of Solomons House: The end of our foundation is the knowledge of causes, and secret motions of things; and the enlarging of the bounds of human empire, to the effecting of all things possible. Problematic as well is the seeming ignorance of the sailors and citizens to the undercurrents of dishonesty which pervade Bensalem. We [the sailors] held it so agreeable and pleasing to us, as

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we forgot both dangers past and fears to come. They do not appear to notice that periodically, the people who come to educate them about various aspects of Bensalem disappear mysteriously. First it is the governor, who apologizes for leaving abruptly and then it is Joabin who is commanded away in haste by a messenger in rich attire. Most likely, the answer to both questions is tied up in the House of Solomon and the illusion it perpetuates concerning the good government of Bensalem. The ever-present goal of the House of Solomon is to keep order and harmony at all costs, for in persiflage to psalm 33 it is stated: happy are the people of Bensalem. The people are happy because all their needs are met. Perhaps Solomons House introduced Christianity to satisfy yet another desire. Christianity helps the Bensalemites feel morally correct, even as the science which allows them to feel content in every other way engages in a game of deception, illusion and worse. Members of the House of Solomon take all an oath of secrecy for the concealing of those which we think fit to keep secret; though some of those we do reveal sometimes to the State, and some not. This makes both the citizens and the sailors blindness a willing one. To probe too deeply into the morality of Solomons House would mean to dispel the illusion and lose many of the advantages which they are fond to enjoy.

While there are decided problems with the society Bacon presents, simultaneously The New Atlantis evokes a deep admiration for the intelligence and profound ingenuity of the men who produced such an abundance of scientific wonders as to alleviate want. In this way, he taps into the utopian tradition which was begun by the likes of Plato. In A Modern Utopia (1905), H.G. Wells calls The New Atlantis story the first of the modern utopias and the greatest of the scientific utopias. Indeed, the tale does look to the future of humankind while also keeping a watchful eye on the past. This is where the unusual title comes into play. Bensalem seemingly has none but the most trivial connection to the Atlantis of antiquity. The title serves to call the readers attention to Platos account of Atlantis in the Timaeus and Critias (Weinberger xiii), and of course to Plato himself. Additionally, Bacons tale is ostensibly incomplete just as the Critias ends (Weinberger xiii). Apparently missing from both Bacons and Platos dialogues is a speech about excess and moderation. Both works are seemingly lacking the kind of knowledge about the uses and abuses of power, which Zeuss may have been about to impart before the Critias ends (Weinberger xv). Yet this lesson is implicit in The New Atlantis. In the sinister undertones of Bacons work, it intimates a message about scientific power to satisfy mans wants. Bacon implies that a less-thanhonest government, to put it mildly, is the price which men must pay to reach the ultimate satisfaction of their desires. In this vein too, says Hubert Luns, the remark should be understood, which scandalously has been put into practice in todays world: We have consultations, which of the inventions and experiences we have discovered shall be published, and which not; and take all an oath of secrecy for the concealing of those which we think fit to keep secret; though some of those we do reveal sometime to the State, and some not. Though the tales connection with Atlantis is still tenuous, Bacons account did help to encourage peoples fascination with the lost city of Atlantis (Forsyth 2) and established some traits which show up in later accounts of that mysterious place. In a broader sense, the tale taps into the human need for a perfect society. The awe and admiration which Bacons society inspires in the reader are in many ways his final illusion, by which he wishes to motivate his readers to seek science. Though the island of Bensalem does not exist except within the pages of his narrative, Bacon viewed it as a pure necessity for which humanity should earnestly strive. The technology of science provides The New Atlantis with a power unrealized by Plato. Because technology is progressive, getting to the utopia has tended increasingly to be a journey in time rather than space (Manuel 28). Bacons contribution to the Atlantean tradition is the sense that, in time, the perfect society is achievable, merely by the application of science. Atlantis is at once paradise lost and the paradise which man can regain, though not through Christs redemption, but solely on his own initiative and by his own intellect.