https://christinagwaldman.com/

[Christie Waldman]

My author website has content about my book, Francis Bacon's Hidden Hand in Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice: A Study of Law, Rhetoric, and Authorship (New York: Algora Publishing, 2018. Do you know, those are pawnballs, the pawnshop emblem, decorating the robe of the merchant depicted on my book's cover? That illustration--which my publisher chose--is from a twelfth century encyclopedia "authored" (says the author) by a woman abbess, Herrad of Hohenbourg, the Hortus deliciarum ("Garden of Delights"). Herrad did not use the word "author" to mean she wrote every word. Quite to the contrary! Like a "bee in the garden of the Lord," she collected the works of a number of writers, including theologians, in her encyclopedia. Her book gave the women of her abbey access to the same theological texts the male priests were reading. Seneca and others had previously used the bee metaphor (Fiona J. Griffiths, The Garden of Delights: Reform and Renaissance for Women in the Twelfth Century (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2007), 80-81, 82-107, 102. Bacon used the bee metaphor on several occasions, as when he wrote: "The Bee adopts the middle course [between empirical and rational],drawing her material from the flowers of the garden or the field, but transforming it by a faculty peculiar to herself. Such should be the activity of a genuine philosophy." (Bacon, Redargutio ("Refutation of Philosophies"), as quoted in Daniel R. Coquillette, Francis Bacon (Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1992), 96, citing Benjamin Farrington's translation in Benjamin Farrington, The Philosophy of Francis Bacon, 103-133, 131).

Lawrence Gerald made an informative comment on the bee as a symbol of a collector of wisdom at my blogpost, "My Favorite Marchand," May 19, 2019.

At my website, I am working on Bacon/Shakespeare authorship bibliographies ("chief, in context, and in commentary"), as time permits. They will never duplicate the extensive SirBacon.org bibliographies, but may hope to complement them. Also, I have a new page called "Bacon on the Web" where I note a few "site-ings" pro and con.  I could not have written my book without the Baconian library of resources that may be searched online here at SirBacon.org. I'm very grateful for it.

Edited March 11, 2022 by Christie Waldman
left off page number for Coquillette, p. 96.

[Light-of-Truth]

Quote

"The Bee adopts the middle course [between empirical and rational],drawing her material from the flowers of the garden or the field, but transforming it by a faculty peculiar to herself. Such should be the activity of a genuine philosophy." (Bacon, Redargutio ("Refutation of Philosophies")

I spent a couple hours or so in these emblems today. It is like Medicine to me, and I had time to poke around.

Bees, and Beehives came up. This one emblem struck me with there beeing a buzzing is in my brain right now. War sucks, no matter where or why. Somehow being a Baconian makes it worse. Hopefully Bacon's "New Atlantis" is unfolding, and I do not know about anything behind the veil of what is happening in the world right now. I do know what I feel. -

In every moment this kind of "thing" has happened in the past couple decades, I see Light in hidden places (ciphers), and I do cling onto some Hope by Bacon's words so long ago. His plan is moving forward, I believe. I sure hope.

This "Bees" Emblem struck me today. What is George Withers saying, and who, what, where did it come from?

The Bees, will in an Helmet breed;
And, Peace, doth after Warre, succeed.

WHen you have heeded, by your Eyes of sense,
This Helmet, hiving of a Swarme of Bees,
Consider, what may gather'd be from thence,
And, what your Eye of Vnderstanding sees.
   That Helmet, and, those other Weapons, there,
Betoken Warre; the Honey-making, Flyes,
An Emblem of a happy Kingdome, are,
Injoying Peace, by painfull Industries:
And, when, all these together are exprest,
As in this Emblem, where the Bees, doe seeme
   To make their dwelling, in a Plumed-Crest,
A Morall is implyed, worth esteeme.
For, these inferre, mysteriously, to me,
That, Peace, and Art, and Thrift, most firme abides,
In those Re-publikes, where, Armes cherisht bee;
And, where, true Martiall-discipline, resides.
When, of their Stings, the Bees, disarm'd, become,
They, who, on others Labours, use to prey,
Incourag'd are, with violence, to come,
And, beare their Honey, and, their Waxe, away.
So when a People, meerely, doe affect
To gather Wealth; and (foolishly secure)
Defences necessary, quite neglect;
Their Foes, to spoyle their Land, it will allure.
Long Peace, brings Warre; and, Warre, brings Peace, againe:
   For, when the smart of Warfare seizeth on them,
They crye, Alarme; and, then, to fight, are faine,
Vntill, their Warre, another Peace, hath wonne them;
   And, out of their old rusty Helmets, then,
   New Bees doe swarme, and, fall to worke agen.

 

 

Christie, you and I have a history for a few years, having fun editing articles and web pages, what fun!

I admire you and your attention to detail. I appreciate when you teach me something, which is often and continual. Even on this very young forum your opinions help keep me in a Baconian perspective, mostly. I do still get carried away for entertainment... LOL

You are one of the most important Baconians alive today. Quote me on that. 🙂

Tell me, us, about the Bees above. If you want to, of course. I'd love to hear from you, and anyone else. Ciphers are not you your interest, but this is not really a cipher, it is a "graphical/verbal advertisement" of current ideology in a book published in 1635.

Your impression as far as Bacon and his works? Withers obviously wrote it before 1635. I suggest it was based on Bacon's wisdom and plan that few knew.

Has Bacon ever taught anything more perfect?

"The Bee adopts the middle course [between empirical and rational],drawing her material from the flowers of the garden or the field, but transforming it by a faculty peculiar to herself. Such should be the activity of a genuine philosophy."

 

Edited March 12, 2022 by Light-of-Truth

[Christie Waldman]

Dear Light-of-Truth, thank you for that! I greatly appreciate our friendship, too. I so wish I had more time at the moment to research ALL THINGS BACON! For the time being, however, work pressures take precedence (though yes, I am here !). I did find comfort in that passage's hopeful tone. What struck me, and it will sound silly, is that I had never thought about how close Hamlet was to Helmet. At first I thought the word was Hamlet. I guess I was expecting to see Hamlet, for some reason. And then, there is "to be (bee?) or not to be." I think there is some of Bacon's wisdom in allowing ourselves to follow trails which might seem silly at first. I wish I knew more about ciphers. Until later, then.... 

Edited September 19, 2024 by Christie Waldman
trails not trials!

[peethagoras2]

Sorry, could not resist it, two bee or not two bee.....