- What does 'knowledge is power' mean?
- Relationship between knowledge and power
- Francis Bacon
- Thomas Hobbes
- Michel Foucault
- Ali Ibn Abi Talib
We explain what the phrase "knowledge is power" means, its origin and authors who studied the relationship between power and knowledge.
What does 'knowledge is power' mean?
On many occasions we have heard it said that the knowledge is power, without knowing that the phrase is an aphorism attributed to Sir Francis Bacon (1561-1626), the English thinker and philosopher who originally formulated it as Scientia potentia est (In latin). However, Bacon further developed the notion of ipsa scientia potentias est ("Science itself is power").
Thus, the phrase "Knowledge is power" in truth was first used in the 1668 version of the Leviathan by Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679). This English philosopher served as secretary to Bacon during his youth.
Whatever the origin of the phrase, of which it is possible to find numerous variants, what is important is the way in which it is traditionally interpreted: as an affirmation that in the education and the accumulation of knowledge, there is the true possibility of human being to be influential, to change, to grow and even to be professionally successful.
Relationship between knowledge and power
From the interpretation that we explained above, it is possible to understand the link that in the society human is established between knowledge, that is, the accumulation of knowledge, and the can.
In fact, this thesis It is at the center of formal education in our societies, in which we value the ability of individuals to learn: knowing how to do things is not the same as following the orders of someone who knows. For this reason, knowledge is appreciated and guarded in more or less formal social circuits, such as academies.
The specialists in each area are in charge of imparting knowledge to their students, of verifying the knowledge, questioning it and organizing it, allowing entry to knowledge only to those initiated. For example, that was what the churches did with respect to their dynastic orders and in a similar way the universities work today.
Therefore, the aphorism can also be interpreted as that those who have knowledge may also hold power. Therefore, knowledge should not be given away, but it deserves a strategic management, at the convenience, among the different competitors. This is what happens, for example, when two Business compete to come up with the formula for the elaboration of a new product.
Francis Bacon
The first Baron Verulam and the first Viscount of Saint Albans, the Englishman Francis Bacon, was an important philosopher who, with his work, laid the foundations for the emergence of the modern idea of science, among other similar contributions.
He is especially recognized for having formulated an empirical theory of knowledge. In addition, he postulated the rules of scientific method experimental, thus discarding Aristotelian science.
Although he is not the true author of the aphorism "knowledge is power", he wrote in his Meditationes Sacrae about what Scientia potestas est, which would translate as "knowledge is your power." In this case he was referring to God, since in those times the thought religious had not yet fully separated from the philosophical and scientific.
Thomas Hobbes
Thomas Hobbes pointed out that the goal of gaining knowledge is power.This English philosopher, considered the founder of the philosophy Modern politics, revolutionized the way we think of ourselves. The first forms of liberalism and of materialism.
In his work By Corpore the thought which later crystallized in the aphorism "knowledge is power": the idea that the objective of knowledge is power, in the same way that the objective of (scientific) speculation is the unleashing of some action or some change.
Michel Foucault
The French post-Marxist historian and philosopher Michel Foucault (1926-1984) was one of the most renowned intellectuals at the end of the 20th century. He stands out for his important theorizations on, among other things, the relationship between knowledge and power.
For Foucault, power is exercised around the ability to define "correct" and "incorrect" ideas as a certain system of beliefs it imposes itself as hegemonic or central, occupying the place of "truth". Consequently, this system ends up defining the way in which we conceive the reality and normalizing our way of life.
Ali Ibn Abi Talib
The first in world history to point out the relationship in power and knowledge was Imam Ali (599-661), cousin and son-in-law of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, the first male to convert to Islam and the first Imam for the Shiites.
In the book Nahj Al-Balagha From the 10th century the saying is attributed to him that “Knowledge is power and can arouse obedience. A man of knowledge can do during his life make sure that others follow and obey him, and that they venerate him after his death”.