On the Significance of the Literary Character of Francis Bacon’s New Atlantis for an Understanding of His Political Thought

Francis Baconʹs New Atlantis is considered with a view to the problematic unity of its authorʹs oeuvre. Beginning from the question of the genre or literary character of the work and proceeding through a consideration of the Platonic precedent announced in the title, an attempt is made to reconcile Baconʹs rejection of the classical, utopian tradition of political thought with the apparently utopian character of the island of Bensalem. Such an interpretation suggests that the title announces a project shown to be possible, even necessary, in the course of the travel story that is the drama of the work.