Full Idea
The human understanding is not composed of dry light, but is subject to influence from the will and emotions, a fact that creates fanciful knowledge; man prefers to believe what he wants to be true.
Gist of Idea
Will and emotion influence understanding, creating false knowledge, and believing what we prefer
Source
Francis Bacon (The New Organon [1620], p.44), quoted by Jaime Edwards/Brian Leiter - Marx 5.4
A Reaction
Cognitive bias! What a striking observation, long before Kant's Copernican Revolution. Bacon is obviously somewhat right - but to what extent? I defend the concept of genuine objectivity. Modern scientific methods come closest.
Book Reference
Edwards,J/Leiter,B: 'Marx' [Routledge 2025], p.171