The New Atlantis short summary & analysis

The New Atlantis - Francis Bacon

The New Atlantis Analysis

Like Thomas More's Utopia and Campenella's Sun country, Bacon's New Atlantis (New Atlantis) is a utopia that describes the ideal social order. The difference of Bacon's utopia from other utopias is that it takes science as the basis for establishing an ideal social order. According to him, thanks to science, the level of welfare of people will increase, life will be easier and relations between people will be positively affected. Bacon did not care about the emancipation of people while explaining the importance of science. He believed that everything should be regular and strict and found the subordinate relationship normal. Even the "master" concept is included in the book.


Bacon, who has not mentioned on issues such as the secret of morality and happiness, has been criticized a lot. But there is a subject he mentions, which is like a wound in Bacon's life. In his book, Bacon talked about the importance and virtue of not taking bribes constantly. Bacon was charged with bribery and favoritism while working in government affairs and was even imprisoned. After getting out, he could not return to these works and turned to philosophy. Bacon frequently mentioned this in the book with the effect of his life.

We can understand that Bacon is not wrong in his ideas about science and has a vast prediction. Scientific agriculture practices and advanced technological developments predicted 400 years in advance. In addition, Bacon's idea of having a command of nature and scientific studies that he explained in detail towards the end of the book served as a guide for scientific studies for years.

The New Atlantis Short Summary

Banselam Island (New Atlantis), which they do not know about its existence, appears before the sailors who lost their way as a result of a disaster at sea. These foreigners, who are noticed by the inhabitants of the island, are welcomed by the public before they can step on the island. The people allow these foreigners to set foot on the island after they learn that they believe they are not dangerous and are Christian. The people of the island approached the sailors very peacefully and treated their patients and met their needs. The people of the island, who are against the war, live together in peace and lead a common life as required by communal life. The sailors, who are affected by the island people, are given the right to stay on the island as much as they wish. The sailors are hosted in a dormitory called “foreigners' house” both for the security of the island and for their comfort. An officer from Banselam often visits and chats with them, trying to help them get to know the island and adapt. The sailors, who are very impressed by what they see, are even confused about staying here forever.

There is also a wise man in the people of Banselam. The public respects this person very much. They even call it as our master. This is not because this person is too rich or too strong; is very knowledgeable. Banselam also pays attention to gathering information from the outside world, but they do it secretly by keeping their assets secret. Thus, they do not stay away from the blessings and knowledge of the outside world without spoiling their purity. The envoys appointed go to other countries and continents in foreign clothing every 12 years; they return from here with a ship full of things. In addition, they bring all the information they can learn to the people of the island. The place where this information is collected and processed is a kind of science academy called Suleiman's House. The field of study that is given more importance in the academy is to dominate the nature. Thus, nature will become an object of man and mankind will be superior.

Another feature of Banselam’s is the value they place on the concept of family. Even though women are not equipped with superior rights, the concept of motherhood is highly valued, and the concept of monogamy is very important. He believes that they protect the public integrity thanks to these values.

Francis Bacon died before he could complete the book New Atlantis, and the book was thus unfinished. After his death, his special counselor and confidant, Guillelmus Rawley, published the New Atlantis in 1638, which Bacon translated into Latin with the belief in the immortality of his work in English.

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