Hello, in this post, I'll share my review for a book of essays and two outfits I wore recently in Split city, Croatia. As you all might know, Split is my home city, but for a quite some time now, I have lived between two cities: Split and Mostar. Anyway, I did some vintage shopping in Split, buying both books and clothes. So, you can expect more vintage book reviews and outfits coming!
The book of essays in question is titled Great Essays in Science and edited by Martin Gardner. It contains 30 scientific essays on different topics. Most of the essays are still relevant and quite interesting. Honestly, I found only a few of them a bit dated and only one was tiresome. All the rest were quite fascinating, even those that felt a bit dated. So, I'm really happy I got this book. I'm sure I'll be rereading this collection of essays. You will be able to read my full review at the end of this post. However, first we'll talk fashion and location a bit.
A SQUARE OF FOUR DUCKLINGS
If you zoom in behind me, you'll see a sign saying 'Square of four ducklings'. I don't think it's actually called that. I think someone just put out that sign as a joke. It's actually quite endearing. Now, that I think of it, I believe I have seen similar signs.
The neighbourhoods you can see are: Žnjan and Trstenik. I love this kind of modern architecture. When it comes to Split city, I don't just like the Old city centre, I love the 'new' parts of Split just as much. I know some of you do, too! At least, you're always telling me that.
MY LAST POST FROM SPLIT CITY- https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2024/04/spring-in-split-3-outfits-one-worn-for.html
If you follow the link above, you'll be able to see more of my Spring in Split city.
Within myself I feel the conflict between desire to wear as many colours as possible and desire to wear black. Is a struggle between a Mediterranean and Slavic in me? As a Mediterranean Slav, I sometimes seem to be drawn to opposite aesthetics. Perhaps the Slav in me loves bold vibrant colours and the Mediterranean in me loves the classical cuts and neutral colours.
MORE ABOUT SPLIT CITY
DO YOU WANT TO SEE MORE OF SPLIT CITY?
MORE LINKS ABOUT SPLIT CITY!!!!
SUSTAINABLE FASHION FILES
THE STORY OF MY OUTFIT #1
HOW I WORE THESE ITEMS BEFORE?
THE BLACK AND WHITE PEPITA COAT THAT LOOKS GREY- old
I got this coat in a collab years ago. I often reach for it, especially in transitional weather.
See how I styled it this April here https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2023/04/i-reread-dune-messiah-by-frank-herbert.html and here https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2024/04/spending-easter-weekend-on-island-hvar.html
You can see how I styled it back in 2022 here- https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2022/04/what-have-i-been-wearing-in-mostar-5.html
back in 2021 https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2021/04/16-ways-to-style-pair-of-blue-flared.html
here https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2021/11/a-feminine-dress-layered-with-blazer.html
and here https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2021/12/travel-with-my-art-croatia-24-znanj-25.html
back in 2020 https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2020/04/stay-safe-with-virtual-travel-visit.html
here https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2020/04/how-to-style-pleated-skirt-mina-bay.html
and here https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2020/12/hairstyle-inspired-by-croatian-folkore.html
and back in 2019 here https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2019/12/how-to-wear-sweater-dress-in-chic-way.html and here https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2019/11/autumn-outfit-proposal-lilac-sweater.html
THE BLACK SKATER DRESS- Waikiki
I bought this dress because I needed more black items. This year our school introduced a BW dress code so that's why. https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2024/02/steppenwolf-novel-by-hermann-hesse-book.html
THE BLACK FLARED LEGGINGS- old
I even illustrated this pair of leggings! See here https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2022/02/fashion-illustration-friday.html
I really wear them all the time, because they are so comfy:
https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2022/02/visit-bunica-recreational-area-with-me.html
https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2022/01/maigret-et-le-clochard-novel-by-georges.html
THE BLACK KITTEN HEELS- no name
I bought this pair to wear to work (because high heels are no longer allowed) and they are so comfortable. I also feel like they have a vintage vibe and I love that. The shape of the shoes isn't very visible in this combo, but if you scroll to my second outfit, you'll be able to study this pair better. There're also links to follow below.
https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2024/05/venera-stojan-skalule-i-batule-book.html
https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2024/04/spending-easter-weekend-on-island-hvar.html
Now, that we have finished our fashion and location talk, let's throw in a little bit of art inspired by Split city.
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| LANDSCAPES INSPIRED BY SPLIT CITY |
LINKS FOR MORE OF MY ART AND PAINTINGS
#7 ZAVALA, ISLAND HVAR (CROATIA) #8 SUCURAJ, ISLAND HVAR (CROATIA)
#9 MALA STINIVA, ISLAND HVAR (CROATIA) #10 HVAR TOWN, ISLAND HVAR ( CROATIA)
#11 JELSA TOWN, DANCE O THE SAILS (CROATIA) #12 ZAVALA, ISLAND HVAR, (CROATIA)
#13: SUCURAJ, ISLAND HVAR (CROATIA) #14: BAY BRIZENICA, ISLAND HVAR (CROATIA)
#15 BAY LOZNA, ISLAND HVAR (CROATIA) #16 BAY VEPRINOVA, ISLAND HVAR (CROATIA)
#17 BOL, ISLAND HVAR (CROATIA) #18 PLANINICA, (BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA)
#19 SUCURAJ, ISLAND HVAR (CROATIA) #33:TRAVEL WITH MY ART LOZNA, ISLAND HVAR
TRAVEL WITH MY ART #35: BEACH KAMENJARA, VRBOSKA, ISLAND HVAR (CROATIA ) (modaodaradosti.blogspot.com) 2023
THE STORY OF MY OUTFIT #2
HOW I WORE THESE ITEMS BEFORE?
Time to talk about my second styling!
STYLING A VINTAGE DRESS WITH A VINTAGE SCARF
Now, most of the items in this outfit are the same as in the first styling, so I won't repeat the links. The only thing different is the vintage dress, so let's focus on that.
THE BLACK VINTAGE DRESS WITH METALIC DETAILS- inherited from my mother! I even illustrated this dress!
THE VINTAGE SCARF- bought at second hand, I believe this is the first time I have actually wore it.
THE BLACK BELT BAG- old
ALWAYS FINDING NEW CREATIVE WAYS TO BRAID MY HAIR- THIS TIME USING PINK YARN
I went shopping with my sister-in-law and picked up this interesting textured pink yarn. I didn't really know what I'll do with it, but it looked really interesting so I bought it. I ended up using it to braid my hair. Originally I braided my hair in a few braids and decided to leave it like that. However, when I put on this vintage dress, the loose braids didn't really match the vibe, so I did an updo with the braids. I think it turned out pretty cool. What do you think?
I wore this for an open air opera concert in May. The month of May is really important for citizens of Split because in May is the day of our patron saint. There are a lot of cultural manifestations during the whole month.
In the end, we didn't listen to the concert because my niece found it to be very noisy. Instead, we had a drink in one of the locals bars and returned home early. My brother also told me a funny story about his encounters with our opera singers. However, I'll save that story for some other time.
REFRESHING MY MEMORY ABOUT THE WRITERS THAT APPEAR IN THIS BOOK
Let's get back to the writers of this book. Before we get to reviewing this book, we'll do some reaseach. We'll use Wikipedia and other sources to find some basic information about them. I was already familiar with most of them, but it's always nice to learn more.
Bacon has been called the father of empiricism.[7] He argued for the possibility of scientific knowledge based only upon inductive reasoning and careful observation of events in nature. He believed that science could be achieved by the use of a sceptical and methodical approach whereby scientists aim to avoid misleading themselves. Although his most specific proposals about such a method, the Baconian method, did not have long-lasting influence, the general idea of the importance and possibility of a sceptical methodology makes Bacon one of the later founders of the scientific method. His portion of the method based in scepticism was a new rhetorical and theoretical framework for science, whose practical details are still central to debates on science and methodology. He is famous for his role in the scientific revolution, promoting scientific experimentation as a way of glorifying God and fulfilling scripture.
Bacon was a patron of libraries and developed a system for cataloguing books under three categories – history, poetry, and philosophy – [8] which could further be divided into specific subjects and subheadings. About books he wrote: "Some books are to be tasted; others swallowed; and some few to be chewed and digested."[9] The Shakespearean authorship thesis, a fringe theory which was first proposed in the mid-19th century, contends that Bacon wrote at least some and possibly all of the plays conventionally attributed to William Shakespeare.[10]
Charles Robert Darwin FRS FRGS FLS FZS JP[6] ([7] DAR-win; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist, geologist and biologist,[8] widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all species of life have descended from a common ancestor is now generally accepted and considered a fundamental concept in science.[9] In a joint publication with Alfred Russel Wallace, he introduced his scientific theory that this branching pattern of evolution resulted from a process he called natural selection, in which the struggle for existence has a similar effect to the artificial selection involved in selective breeding.[10] Darwin has been described as one of the most influential figures in human history and was honoured by burial in Westminster Abbey.[11][12]
William James was an original thinker in and between the disciplines of physiology, psychology and philosophy. His twelve-hundred page masterwork, The Principles of Psychology (1890), is a rich blend of physiology, psychology, philosophy, and personal reflection that has given us such ideas as “the stream of thought” and the baby’s impression of the world “as one great blooming, buzzing confusion” (PP 462). It contains seeds of pragmatism and phenomenology, and influenced generations of thinkers in Europe and America, including Edmund Husserl, Bertrand Russell, John Dewey, and Ludwig Wittgenstein. James studied at Harvard’s Lawrence Scientific School and the School of Medicine, but his writings were from the outset as much philosophical as scientific. “Some Remarks on Spencer’s Notion of Mind as Correspondence” (1878) and “The Sentiment of Rationality” (1879, 1882) presage his future pragmatism and pluralism, and contain the first statements of his view that philosophical theories are reflections of a philosopher’s temperament.
James hints at his religious concerns in his earliest essays and in The Principles, but they become more explicit in The Will to Believe and Other Essays in Popular Philosophy (1897), Human Immortality: Two Supposed Objections to the Doctrine (1898), The Varieties of Religious Experience (1902) and A Pluralistic Universe (1909). James oscillated between thinking that a “study in human nature” such as Varieties could contribute to a “Science of Religion” and the belief that religious experience involves an altogether supernatural domain, somehow inaccessible to science but accessible to the individual human subject. Cited from https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/james/
GREAT ESSAYS IN SCIENCE, EDITED BY MARTIN GARDNER
Martin Gardner, author of numerous books on science, mathematics, and pseudo-science, has assembled thirty-four extraordinary essays by eminent philosophers, scientists, and writers on the fundamental aspects of modern science.
As Gardner makes clear in his preface to the formerly titled Sacred Beetle and Other Great Essays in Science, his intent is not to teach the reader science or to report on the latest trends and discoveries. "Rather, the purpose of this book is to spread before the reader, whether his or her interest in science be passionate or mild, a sumptuous feast of great writing - absorbing, thought-disturbing pieces that have something to say about science and say it forcibly and well."
Gardner's entertaining biographical commentaries make Great Essays in Science a rich store of good reading and an informal history of the people and ideas that have shaped our culture and transformed our everyday lives. This collection includes works by Isaac Asimov, Rachel Carson, Charles Darwin, John Dewey, Albert Einstein, Jean Henri Fabre, Sigmund Freud, Stephen Jay Gould, Aldous Huxley, Julian Huxley, William James, Ernest Nagel, Bertrand Russell, Carl Sagan, Lewis Thomas, H.G. Wells, and others.
MY REVIEW OF THE GREAT ESSAYS IN SCIENCE
FRANCIS BACON, PROLOGUE: THE SPHINX
A fun essay that is easy to read, but doesn't really offer anything revolutionary. It does show the cleverness of its author. I will share this essay later on and even include some reading comprehension questions. This essay is very short and easy to read. Bacon basically draws parallels between the tale of the Sphinx (based on king Oedipus legend) and Science. Bacon compares Science to a Sphinx, saying that to an uneducated and untrained person, Science might seem like a monster.
CHARLES DARWIN: ORIGIN OF SPECIES
What to say about this essay? I'm pretty sure I've already read it, but it was fun reading it again. This essay is pretty well read and known. I'm sure you're aware that there is a book with the same title as well. It basically puts forward Darwin's theory of evolution. It's an interesting read, for sure.
JOHN DEWEY: THE INFLUENCE OF DARWINISM ON PHILOSOPHY
Again, a very good essay. I enjoyed it.
WILLIAM JAMES: THE PROBLEM OF BEING
I liked this essay but I admit that I didn't take too much from it. It raises some interesting questions, though.
HAVELOCK ELLIS: WHAT MAKES A WOMEN BEAUTIFUL?
I didn't particularly enjoy this essay. To be frank, I found it somewhat tiresome. I read about the author being complemented on his exceptional knowledge of literature (based on this essay) but all I found is that the author makes some basic connections about well know female figures from literature.
JEAN HENRY FABRE: THE SACRED BEETLE
This was such an amazing essay. Fabre has an amazing ability to make you feel like you were there with him. A scientist with a literary talent. Absolutely marvelous!
GILBERT KEITH CHESTERTON: THE LOGIC OF ELFLAND
I quite liked this essay, I thought it was playful and fun. It's a mental exercise of some kind, not of very serious one.
ROBERT HALL: THE MOON
Possibly a little bit dated, but still quite interesting.
JOSEPH WOOD KRUTCH: THE COLLOID AND THE CRYSTAL
This essay was quite original. Not what I expected at all.
...Even to admire too much or too exclusively the
alien kind of beauty is dangerous. Much as I love and am
moved by the grand, inanimate forms of nature, I am
always shocked and a little frightened by those of her
professed lovers to whom landscape is the most
important thing, and to whom landscape is merely a
matter of forms and colors. If they see or are moved by
an animal or flower, it is to them merely a matter of a
picturesque completion, and their fellow creature are no
more than decorative details. But without some
continuous awareness of the two great realms of the
inanimate and the animate there can be no love of nature
as I understand it, and what is worse, there must be a
sort of disloyalty to our cause, to us who are colloid, not
crystal. The pantheist who feels the oneness of all living
things, I can understand; perhaps indeed he and I are in
essential agreement. But the ultimate All is not one thing,
but two. And because the alien half is in its way as proud
and confident and successful as our half, its fundamental
difference may not be disregarded with impunity. Of us
and all we stand for, the enemy is not so much death as
the not-living, or rather that great system which succeeds
without ever having had the need to be alive. The
frostflower is not merely a wonder; it is also a threat and
a warning. How admirable, it seems to say, not living can
be!
JOSE ORTEGA Y GASSET : THE BARBARISM OF "SPECIALIZATION"
This was a fascinating essay that made me think! I have to reread it.
Modern technicism springs from the union between capitalism and experimental science. China reached a high degree of technique without in the least suspecting the existence of physics. It is only modern European technique that has a scientific basis, from which it derives its specific character, its possibility of limitless progress. But the development of physics introduced a task opposite in character to unification. In order to progress, science demanded specialization, not in herself, but in men of science. Specialization commences precisely at a period which gives to civilized man the title ‘encyclopaedic’. The nineteenth century starts on its course under the direction of beings who lived ‘encyclopaedically’, though their production has already some tinge of specialism. The specialization, then, that has made possible the progress of experimental science during a century, is approaching a stage where it can no longer continue its advance unless a new generation undertakes to provide it with a more powerful form of turnspit.
THOMAS HENRY HUXLEY: SCIENCE AND CULTURE
I absolutely loved this essay! As someone with a humanist education that is at the same time a science lover, this is very close to my heart.
Thus I venture to think that the pretensions of our modern Humanists to the possession of the monopoly of culture and to the exclusive inheritance of the spirit of antiquity must be abated, if not abandoned. But I should be very sorry that anything I have said should be taken to imply a desire on my part to depreciate the value of classical education, as it might be and as it sometimes is. The native capacities of mankind vary no less than their opportunities; and while culture is one, the road by18 which one man may best reach it is widely different from that which is most advantageous to another. Again, while scientific education is yet inchoate and tentative, classical education is thoroughly well organised upon the practical experience of generations of teachers. So that, given ample time for learning and destination for ordinary life, or for a literary career, I do not think that a young Englishman in search of culture can do better than follow the course usually marked out for him, supplementing its deficiencies by his own efforts.
JOHN BURROUGHS: SCIENCE AND LITERATURE
Another essay I absolutely loved!
ERNEST NAGEL: AUTOMATIC CONTROL
JOHANATAN NORTHON LEONARD: OTHER-WORDLY LIFE
J.ROBERT OPPENHEIMER: PHYSICS IN CONTEMPORARY WORLD
ALFRED NORTH WHITEHEAD: RELIGION AND SCIENCE
JOHN DON PASOS: PROTEUS
JULIAN HUXLEY: AN ESSAY ON BIRD-MIND
ARTHUR STANLEY EDDINGTON: THE DECLINE OF DETERMINISM
ALDOUS HUXLEY: SCIENCE IN THE BRAVE NEW WORLD
RACHEL CARSON: THE SUNLESS SEA
MAURICE MAETERLINCK: THE NUPTIAL FLIGHT
H.G. WELLS: THE NEW SOURCE OF ENERGY, SCIENCE AND THE ULTIMATE TRUTH
LAURA FERMI: SUCCESS
SAMUEL GOUDSMITH: GESTAPO IN SCIENCE
ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON: PAN'S PIPES
SIGMUND FREUD: DREAMS OF DEATH OF BELOVED PERSONS
BERTRAND RUSSEL: THE SCIENCE TO SAVE US FROM SCIENCE, THE GREATNESS OF ALBERT EINSTEIN
ALBERT EINSTEIN: E= MC2
I went to trouble of writing down the contents of this book and finding links to essays online. I haven't managed to find all of them on the Internet, but I did find many of them. So, you can read them, too!
CONTENTS
FRANCIS BACON, PROLOGUE: THE SPJINX
CHARLES DARWIN: ORIGIN OF SPECIES
JOHN DEWEY: THE INFLUENCE OF DARWINISM ON PHILOSOPHY
WILLIAM JAMES: THE PROBLEM OF BEING
HAVELOCK ELLIS: WHAT MAKES A WOMEN BEAUTIFUL?
JEAN HENRY FABRE: THE SACRED BEETLE
GILBERT KEITH CHESTERTON: THE LOGIC OF ELFLAND
ROBERT HALL: THE MOON
JOSEPH WOOD KRUTCH: THE COLLOID AND THE CRYSTAL
JOSE ORTEGA Y GASSET : THE BARBARISM OF "SPECIALIZATION"
THOMAS HENRY HUXLEY: SCIENCE AND CULTURE
JOHN BURROUGHS: SCIENCE AND LITERATURE
ERNEST NAGEL: AUTOMATIC CONTROL
JONATHAN NORTHON LEONARD: OTHER-WORDLY LIFE
J.ROBERT OPPENHEIMER: PHYSICS IN CONTEMPORARY WORLD
ALFRED NORTH WHITEHEAD: RELIGION AND SCIENCE
JOHN DON PASOS: PROTEUS
JULIAN HUXLEY: AN ESSAY ON BIRD-MIND
ALDOUS HUXLEY: SCIENCE IN THE BRAVE NEW WORLD
RACHEL CARSON: THE SUNLESS SEA
MAURICE MAETERLINCK: THE NUPTIAL FLIGHT
H.G. WELLS: THE NEW SOURCE OF ENERGY, SCIENCE AND THE ULTIMATE TRUTH
LAURA FERMI: SUCCESS
SAMUEL GOUDSMIT: GESTAPO IN SCIENCE
ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON: PAN'S PIPES
SIGMUND FREUD: DREAMS OF DEATH OF BELOVED PERSONS
BERTRAND RUSSELL: THE SCIENCE TO SAVE US FROM SCIENCE, THE GREATNESS OF ALBERT EINSTEIN
ALBERT EINSTEIN: E= MC2
Francis Bacon (1561–1626). Of the Wisdom of the Ancients. 1857.
XXVIII. SphinxXXVIII. Sphinx Francis Bacon (1561–1626). Of the Wisdom of the Ancients. 1857.
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| SPHINX, says the story, was a monster combining many shapes in one. She had the face and voice of a virgin, the wings of a bird, the claws of a griffin. She dwelt on the ridge of a mountain near Thebes and infested the roads, lying in ambush for travellers, whom she would suddenly attack and lay hold of; and when she had mastered them, she propounded to them certain dark and perplexed riddles, which she was thought to have obtained from the Muses. And if the wretched captives could not at once solve and interpret the same, as they stood hesitating and confused she cruelly tore them to pieces. Time bringing no abatement of the calamity, the Thebans offered to any man who should expound the Sphinx’s riddles (for this was the only way to subdue her) the sovereignty of Thebes as his reward. The greatness of the prize induced Œdipus, a man of wisdom and penetration, but lame from wounds in his feet, to accept the condition and make the trial: who presenting himself full of confidence and alacrity before the Sphinx, and being asked what kind of animal it was which was born four-footed, afterwards became two-footed, then three-footed, and at last four-footed again, answered readily that it was man; who at his birth and during his infancy sprawls on all four, hardly attempting to creep; in a little while walks upright on two feet; in later years leans on a walking-stick and so goes as it were on three; and at last in extreme age and decrepitude, his sinews all failing, sinks into a quadruped again, and keeps his bed. This was the right answer and gave him the victory; whereupon he slew the Sphinx; whose body was put on the back of an ass and carried about in triumph; while himself was made according to compact King of Thebes. | 1 |
| The fable is an elegant and a wise one, invented apparently in allusion to Science; especially in its application to practical life. Science, being the wonder of the ignorant and unskilful, may be not absurdly called a monster. In figure and aspect it is represented as many-shaped, in allusion to the immense variety of matter with which it deals. It is said to have the face and voice of a woman, in respect of its beauty and facility of utterance. Wings are added because the sciences and the discoveries of science spread and fly abroad in an instant; the communication of knowledge being like that of one candle with another, which lights up at once. Claws, sharp and hooked, are ascribed to it with great elegance, because the axioms and arguments of science penetrate and hold fast the mind, so that it has no means of evasion or escape; a point which the sacred philosopher also noted: The words of the wise are as goads, and as nails driven deep in. Again, all knowledge may be regarded as having its station on the heights of mountains; for it is deservedly esteemed a thing sublime and lofty, which looks down upon ignorance as from an eminence, and has moreover a spacious prospect on every side, such as we find on hill-tops. It is described as infesting the roads, because at every turn in the journey or pilgrimage of human life, matter and occasion for study assails and encounters us. Again Sphinx proposes to men a variety of hard questions and riddles which she received from the Muses. In these, while they remain with the Muses, there is probably no cruelty; for so long as the object of meditation and inquiry is merely to know, the understanding is not oppressed or straitened by it, but is free to wander and expatiate, and finds in the very uncertainty of conclusion and variety of choice a certain pleasure and delight; but when they pass from the Muses to Sphinx, that is from contemplation to practice, whereby there is necessity for present action, choice, and decision, then they begin to be painful and cruel; and unless they be solved and disposed of, they strangely torment and worry the mind, pulling it first this way and then that, and fairly tearing it to pieces. Moreover the riddles of the Sphinx have always a twofold condition attached to them; distraction and laceration of mind, if you fail to solve them; if you succeed, a kingdom. For he who understands his subject is master of his end; and every workman is king over his work. | 2 |
Now of the Sphinx’s riddles there are in all two kinds: one concerning the nature of things, another concerning the nature of man; and in like manner there are two kinds of kingdom offered as the reward of solving them: one over nature, and the other over man. For the command over things natural,—over bodies, medicines, mechanical powers, and infinite other of the kind—is the one proper and ultimate end of true natural philosophy; however the philosophy of the School, content with what it finds, and swelling with talk, may neglect or spurn the search after realities and works. But the riddle proposed to Œdipus, by the solution of which he became King of Thebes, related to the nature of man; for whoever has a thorough insight into the nature of man may shape his fortune almost as he will, and is born for empire; as was well declared concerning the arts of the Romans,—| | Be thine the art, | | O Rome, with government to rule the nations, | | And to know whom to spare and whom to abate, | | And settle the condition of the world. |
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QUESTIONS ABOUT THE ESSAY FOR READING COMPREHENSION
1) Who was the Sphinx?
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| SPHINX, says the story, was a monster combining many shapes in one. |
2) When does Bacon mention Sphinx?
It's literary in the opening sentence of the essay.
3) Why do you think he mentions the Sphinx?
To fully understand that, you need to read the whole essay.
4) Why is it relevant that Sphinx combines shapes?
Perhaps because science combines shapes as well.
5) How does Bacon originally describe the Sphinx? Use quotation from the text.
Bacon first describes the Sphinx as a monster combined shapes and then he precedes to give a canon description of the Sphinx, followed by canon descriptions of its cruelty. Bacon basically retells the legend of the Sphinx.
She had the face and voice of a virgin, the wings of a bird, the claws of a griffin. She dwelt on the ridge of a mountain near Thebes and infested the roads, lying in ambush for travellers, whom she would suddenly attack and lay hold of; and when she had mastered them, she propounded to them certain dark and perplexed riddles, which she was thought to have obtained from the Muses. And if the wretched captives could not at once solve and interpret the same, as they stood hesitating and confused she cruelly tore them to pieces.
6) How does Bacon retells the legend of the Sphinx?
Bacon tells the Sphinx legend that is based on the legend of king Oedipus from Greek mythology. Bacon retells the story briefly but descriptively.
Time bringing no abatement of the calamity, the Thebans offered to any man who should expound the Sphinx’s riddles (for this was the only way to subdue her) the sovereignty of Thebes as his reward. The greatness of the prize induced Œdipus, a man of wisdom and penetration, but lame from wounds in his feet, to accept the condition and make the trial: who presenting himself full of confidence and alacrity before the Sphinx, and being asked what kind of animal it was which was born four-footed, afterwards became two-footed, then three-footed, and at last four-footed again, answered readily that it was man; who at his birth and during his infancy sprawls on all four, hardly attempting to creep; in a little while walks upright on two feet; in later years leans on a walking-stick and so goes as it were on three; and at last in extreme age and decrepitude, his sinews all failing, sinks into a quadruped again, and keeps his bed. This was the right answer and gave him the victory; whereupon he slew the Sphinx; whose body was put on the back of an ass and carried about in triumph; while himself was made according to compact King of Thebes.
7) What does Bacon concludes about the fable of the Sphinx?
He concludes that the fable of Sphinx is an elegant and wise one.
8) What does Bacon compare Science to? What is invented apparently in allusion to Science?
According to Bacon, the fable is invented in allusion to Science, especially when it comes to its application to practical life. Moreover, Bacon concludes that Science might be called a monster.
The fable is an elegant and a wise one, invented apparently in allusion to Science; especially in its application to practical life. Science, being the wonder of the ignorant and unskillful, may be not absurdly called a monster.
9) In what ways does Bacon compare Science with the Sphinx? What metaphors does he use? Find quotation from the text.
Bacon concludes that both Science and Sphinx as traditionally represented as multi-shaped. Sphinx is a many-shaped monster and Science deals with an immense variety of matter. Moreover, Bacon states that Sphinx has the face and voice of a women and this can be connected to Science in the sense of its Beauty. In addition, Bacon metaphorically connects and compares wings of a Sphinx with wings of Science.
In figure and aspect it is represented as many-shaped, in allusion to the immense variety of matter with which it deals. It is said to have the face and voice of a woman, in respect of its beauty and facility of utterance. Wings are added because the sciences and the discoveries of science spread and fly abroad in an instant; the communication of knowledge being like that of one candle with another, which lights up at once. Claws, sharp and hooked, are ascribed to it with great elegance, because the axioms and arguments of science penetrate and hold fast the mind, so that it has no means of evasion or escape; a point which the sacred philosopher also noted: The words of the wise are as goads, and as nails driven deep in. Again, all knowledge may be regarded as having its station on the heights of mountains; for it is deservedly esteemed a thing sublime and lofty, which looks down upon ignorance as from an eminence, and has moreover a spacious prospect on every side, such as we find on hill-tops. It is described as infesting the roads, because at every turn in the journey or pilgrimage of human life, matter and occasion for study assails and encounters us. Again Sphinx proposes to men a variety of hard questions and riddles which she received from the Muses. In these, while they remain with the Muses, there is probably no cruelty; for so long as the object of meditation and inquiry is merely to know, the understanding is not oppressed or straitened by it, but is free to wander and expatiate, and finds in the very uncertainty of conclusion and variety of choice a certain pleasure and delight; but when they pass from the Muses to Sphinx, that is from contemplation to practice, whereby there is necessity for present action, choice, and decision, then they begin to be painful and cruel; and unless they be solved and disposed of, they strangely torment and worry the mind, pulling it first this way and then that, and fairly tearing it to pieces. Moreover the riddles of the Sphinx have always a twofold condition attached to them; distraction and laceration of mind, if you fail to solve them; if you succeed, a kingdom. For he who understands his subject is master of his end; and every workman is king over his work.
10) What two types of Sphinx's riddles does Bacon mention?
Now of the Sphinx’s riddles there are in all two kinds: one concerning the nature of things, another concerning the nature of man; and in like manner there are two kinds of kingdom offered as the reward of solving them: one over nature, and the other over man. For the command over things natural,—over bodies, medicines, mechanical powers, and infinite other of the kind—is the one proper and ultimate end of true natural philosophy; however the philosophy of the School, content with what it finds, and swelling with talk, may neglect or spurn the search after realities and works. But the riddle proposed to Œdipus, by the solution of which he became King of Thebes, related to the nature of man; for whoever has a thorough insight into the nature of man may shape his fortune almost as he will, and is born for empire; as was well declared concerning the arts of the Romans,—| | Be thine the art, |
| O Rome, with government to rule the nations, |
| And to know whom to spare and whom to abate, |
| And settle the condition of the world. |
Thank you for reading and visiting!
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Wow you picked up a lot of interesting books. The science book sounded super interesting or at least parts of it. I love your outfits here and what you did with your hair SUPER cool! And Split City looks so interesting with the old and new mixed together.
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Thank you. I liked these braids too, I will do them again.
DeleteMe parece un libro interesante. Me gusta tu abrigo y tus trenzas. Te mando un beso.
ReplyDeleteGracias!
DeleteBoth styles are great. The second one is incredibly bold with ethnic inserts :-) Happy Sunday!
ReplyDeleteGreat outfit 😊 Have a nice day 😊
ReplyDeleteGreat Outfits. I love your drawings <3
ReplyDeleteYour look is so charming, especially your hairstyle :) combined with the beautiful Split, everything looks stunningly beautiful to me!
ReplyDeleteOh, you give us a lot to think on with those science essays. So great to see how you brought it to our attention. I like how you compare what you like to wear between two cultures, too. Very pretty braids. Yes, we are all so complicated and sometimes foolish, but we might never really know. Especially, if we have enough theory behind it. Thanks so much for the fabulous post!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for having a post about science. Oh, when you mentioned the beetle, I had to wonder what an interesting subject. Such a beautiful location for your photo shoot. I like how you transform it all together. Such interesting books. Adoring your hair too. Awesome to see your creativity! I hope all is well. You are always stunning and a force of nature of finding amazing books to talk about. Happy June!
ReplyDeleteThe scientist who wrote the essay about the beetle did it so poetically. It really is interesting!
DeleteI commend you on your in-depth reviews, Ivana. I love reading but find it really hard to review what I've read!
ReplyDeleteYour hair looks amazing in those braids and both your art and outfits are always inspiring. Interesting on what you say about the differing styles of Mediterranean women and Slavic women and love that despite fashion becoming homogenised by the internet there's still subtle differences between cultures. I love the flamboyant and colourful style of the Greek, Italian, Spanish and Maltese women I see on my travels and find French style to be rather staid and dull. xxx
That's a good point. What is Mediterranean style anyway? It's different in Israel, Turkey, France, Spain, Malta and so on. Often we equal Mediterranean with a neutral colour palette, but how true is this?
DeleteGreat photos! By the way, I like the drawings very much.
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ReplyDeleteThat vintage book of scientific essays sounds fascinating indeed. Like Vix, I'm admiring your ability to write such in-depth reviews.
ReplyDeleteYour outfits are beautifully and thoughtfully put together as always, whether you are wearing colour or mostly black.
I think there's definitely some truth in there being subtle differences in culture and the way of dressing between different countries or regions. It always strikes me that our next-door neighbours, the Dutch, tend to dress subtly different from us here in Belgium, however strange that may sound! xxx
Yes, I believe there are subtle differences.
DeleteGreat outfits.
ReplyDeleteThanks Hena
DeleteI loved your looks and the photos.
ReplyDeleteThe books look really good, I need to read more...
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Thank you!
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Mnogo lepe kombinacije, draga, mnogo mi se dopada materijal od kog je komplet iz prve! <3
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DeleteI enjoyed seeing your drawings again, your beautiful and colourful art, I'm not a Mediterranean Slav, but I also feel the same conflict with colours, except for black. I like the elegance of your outfits but it's something I wouldn't wear, you know I have a trauma with that colour! I loved your hairstyle!
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