{"title":"Bacon’s The Advancement of Learning: A Possible Influence on Jonson’s The Alchemist","authors":"Qin Lin","doi":"10.1080/00144940.2020.1868389","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Although sources for parts of the plot of Ben Jonson’s The Alchemist, particular scenes, specific speeches, and its use of the language of alchemy have been suggested, critics have ignored the connections between the play and Francis Bacon’s The Advancement of Learning. This article argues that Jonson’s dramatization of astrology, magic, and alchemy in The Alchemist is probably informed by Bacon’s ideas about the three distempers of learning in his The Advancement of Learning.","PeriodicalId":42643,"journal":{"name":"EXPLICATOR","volume":"79 1","pages":"4 - 9"},"PeriodicalIF":0.2000,"publicationDate":"2020-12-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/00144940.2020.1868389","citationCount":"1","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"EXPLICATOR","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00144940.2020.1868389","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"0","JCRName":"LITERATURE","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 1
Abstract
Abstract Although sources for parts of the plot of Ben Jonson’s The Alchemist, particular scenes, specific speeches, and its use of the language of alchemy have been suggested, critics have ignored the connections between the play and Francis Bacon’s The Advancement of Learning. This article argues that Jonson’s dramatization of astrology, magic, and alchemy in The Alchemist is probably informed by Bacon’s ideas about the three distempers of learning in his The Advancement of Learning.
期刊介绍:
Concentrating on works that are frequently anthologized and studied in college classrooms, The Explicator, with its yearly index of titles, is a must for college and university libraries and teachers of literature. Text-based criticism thrives in The Explicator. One of few in its class, the journal publishes concise notes on passages of prose and poetry. Each issue contains between 25 and 30 notes on works of literature, ranging from ancient Greek and Roman times to our own, from throughout the world. Students rely on The Explicator for insight into works they are studying.