---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Roger Bacon, a disciple of the Arabs…"
description: "\"Roger Bacon, a disciple of the Arabs, also insisted on the primary necessity of Mathematics, without which no other science can be known; yet by Mathem..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/514/george-henry-lewes-4544_clear_roger-bacon-a-disciple-of-the-arabs-also_2863742.jpg"
---

#  Roger Bacon, a disciple of the Arabs, also insisted on the…

![“Roger Bacon, a disciple of the Arabs, also insisted on the primary necessity of Mathematics, without which no other science can be known; yet by Mathematics it is clear that he meant something very different from what we mean, including under that head even dancing, singing, gesticulation, and…” quote by George Henry Lewes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/514/george-henry-lewes-4544_clear_roger-bacon-a-disciple-of-the-arabs-also_2863742.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/514/george-henry-lewes-4544_clear_roger-bacon-a-disciple-of-the-arabs-also_2863742.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/514/george-henry-lewes-4544_clear_roger-bacon-a-disciple-of-the-arabs-also_2863742.jpg)

> “Roger Bacon, a disciple of the Arabs, also insisted on the primary necessity of Mathematics, without which no other science can be known; yet by Mathematics it is clear that he meant something very different from what we mean, including under that head even dancing, singing, gesticulation, and performance on musical instruments.”

[George Henry Lewes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-henry-lewes/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Bacon argued math is essential for science, yet his view of math included artistic activities like music and dance.

**In simple terms:** Math is key to science, but also linked to arts.

Key Takeaway

Appreciate interdisciplinary connections.

Themes

philosophy mathematics arts interdisciplinarity

Mood

reflective inquisitive

Type

academic philosophical

When to use this quote

- education curriculum
- research methodology
- creative problem solving

Key Concepts

Epistemology aesthetic theory cognitive integration

Questions to Reflect On

- How can math inform artistic practice?
- What limits does this view have?

A Different Perspective

May conflate distinct domains.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Clear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clear/) [Dancing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dancing/) [Different](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/different/) [Disciple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disciple/) [Including](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/including/) [Instruments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/instruments/) [Known](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/known/) [Known Mathematics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/known-mathematics-3878269/) [Mathematics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mathematics/) [Mathematics Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mathematics-science-2113880/) [Mean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mean/) [Musical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/musical/) [Musical instruments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/musical-instruments/) [Necessity Mathematics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/necessity-mathematics-3878270/) [Performances](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/performances/) [Primaries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/primaries/) [Roger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/roger/) [Roger Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/roger-bacon-722489/) [Science Known](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science-known-1861896/) [Singing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/singing/)

## Related quotes

> [Roger\_Bacon" title="Roger Bacon"&gt;Roger Bacon expressed a feeling which afterwards moved many minds, when he said that if he had the power he would burn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-henry-lewes/roger-bacon-title-roger-bacon-roger-bacon-expressed-a-feeling-which/)

[George Henry Lewes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-henry-lewes/)

> [“Ralph Gomory, the President of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, proposes a tripartite division of science: the known, the unknown, and the unknowable. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-traub/ralph-gomory-the-president-of-the-alfred-p-sloan-foundation-proposes/)

[Joseph Traub](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-traub/)

> [We sort of think that science is about the known, but science is really about exploring the unknown.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-livingston/we-sort-of-think-that-science-is-about-the-known-but-science-is/)

[Ron Livingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-livingston/)

> [To me the most interesting thing about man is that he is an animal who practices art and science and in every known society…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-bronowski/to-me-the-most-interesting-thing-about-man-is-that-he-is-an-animal/)

[Jacob Bronowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacob-bronowski/)

> [Science was the known and then people would place God in the unknown, like God explained the unknown.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-wilmore/science-was-the-known-and-then-people-would-place-god-in-the-unknown/)

[Larry Wilmore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-wilmore/)

> [From Roger Bacon, the 13th century Franciscan who pioneered the scientific method, to George Lemaitre, the 20th century Belgian priest who first developed a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-r-miller/from-roger-bacon-the-13th-century-franciscan-who-pioneered-the/)

[Kenneth R. Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-r-miller/)

> [After Bruno's death, during the first half of the seventeenth century, Descartes seemed about to take the leadership of human thought... in promoting an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-dickson-white/after-bruno-s-death-during-the-first-half-of-the-seventeenth-century/)

[Andrew Dickson White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-dickson-white/)

> [“The thirteenth-century philosopher Roger Bacon claimed that “nobody can obtain to proficiency in the science of mathematics by the method hitherto known unless he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-foer/the-thirteenth-century-philosopher-roger-bacon-claimed-that-nobody/)

[Joshua Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-foer/)

> [“Grosseteste influenced Roger Bacon's ideas about mathematics and Nature. Bacon wrote hundreds of pages on the subject and, indeed, no historical figure has ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-barrow/grosseteste-influenced-roger-bacon-s-ideas-about-mathematics-and/)

[John D. Barrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-barrow/)

> [ \[...\] any fool can make a discovery. Every baby has to discover more in the first years of its life than Roger Bacon ever… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/any-fool-can-make-a-discovery-every-baby-has-to-discover-more-in-the/)

[George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/)

> [“The only writer of the Middle Ages to describe cryptography instead of just using it was Roger Bacon, the English monk of startlingly modern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/the-only-writer-of-the-middle-ages-to-describe-cryptography-instead/)

[David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/)

> [“Roger Bacon held that three classes of substance were capable of magic: the herbal, the mineral, and the verbal. With their leaves of fiber,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-battles/roger-bacon-held-that-three-classes-of-substance-were-capable-of/)

[Matthew Battles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-battles/)

> [In mathematics and science we solve our problems as well as create them. But in art and philosophy things are not so simple.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-scruton/in-mathematics-and-science-we-solve-our-problems-as-well-as-create/)

[Roger Scruton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-scruton/)

> [Mathematics as a science, commenced when first someone, probably a Greek, proved propositions about "any" things or about "some" things, without specifications of definite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/mathematics-as-a-science-commenced-when-first-someone-probably-a/)

[Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/)

> [In mathematics and science definition are simple, but bare-bones. Until you get to a problem which you understand it takes hundreds and hundreds of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benoit-mandelbrot/in-mathematics-and-science-definition-are-simple-but-bare-bones-until/)

[Benoit Mandelbrot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benoit-mandelbrot/)

## More by George Henry Lewes

> [Heart and Brain are the two lords of life. In the metaphors of ordinary speech and in the stricter language of science, we use…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-henry-lewes/heart-and-brain-are-the-two-lords-of-life-in-the-metaphors-of/)

[George Henry Lewes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-henry-lewes/)

> [It is unhappily true that much insincere Literature and Art, executed solely with a view to effect, does succeed by deceiving the public.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-henry-lewes/it-is-unhappily-true-that-much-insincere-literature-and-art-executed/)

[George Henry Lewes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-henry-lewes/)

> [I have always considered The Merry Wives one of the worst plays, if not altogether the worst, that Shakespeare has left us. The wit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-henry-lewes/i-have-always-considered-the-merry-wives-one-of-the-worst-plays-if/)

[George Henry Lewes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-henry-lewes/)

> [Literature is at once the cause and the effect of social progress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-henry-lewes/literature-is-at-once-the-cause-and-the-effect-of-social-progress/)

[George Henry Lewes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-henry-lewes/)

> [Science is the systematic classification of experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-henry-lewes/science-is-the-systematic-classification-of-experience/)

[George Henry Lewes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-henry-lewes/)

> [In complex trains of thought signs are indispensable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-henry-lewes/in-complex-trains-of-thought-signs-are-indispensable/)

[George Henry Lewes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-henry-lewes/)

> [Literature is at once the cause and the effect of social progress. It deepens our natural sensibilities, and strengthens by exercise our intellectual capacities.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-henry-lewes/literature-is-at-once-the-cause-and-the-effect-of-social-progress-it/)

[George Henry Lewes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-henry-lewes/)

> [If you feel yourself to be above the mass, speak so as to raise the mass to the height of your argument.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-henry-lewes/if-you-feel-yourself-to-be-above-the-mass-speak-so-as-to-raise-the/)

[George Henry Lewes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-henry-lewes/)

> [The artist is called a creator...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-henry-lewes/the-artist-is-called-a-creator/)

[George Henry Lewes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-henry-lewes/)

> [To some men popularity is always suspicious. Enjoying none themselves, they are prone to suspect the validity of those attainments which command it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-henry-lewes/to-some-men-popularity-is-always-suspicious-enjoying-none-themselves/)

[George Henry Lewes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-henry-lewes/)

> [The art of writing is not, as many seem to imagine, the art of bringing fine phrases into rhythmical order, but the art of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-henry-lewes/the-art-of-writing-is-not-as-many-seem-to-imagine-the-art-of-bringing/)

[George Henry Lewes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-henry-lewes/)

> [Literature delivers tidings of the world within and the world without.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-henry-lewes/literature-delivers-tidings-of-the-world-within-and-the-world-without/)

[George Henry Lewes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-henry-lewes/)

> [If the members of a class do not understand -- if those directly addressed fail to listen, or listening, fail to recognize a power…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-henry-lewes/if-the-members-of-a-class-do-not-understand-if-those-directly/)

[George Henry Lewes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-henry-lewes/)

> [No man was ever eloquent by trying to be eloquent, but only by being so.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-henry-lewes/no-man-was-ever-eloquent-by-trying-to-be-eloquent-but-only-by-being-so/)

[George Henry Lewes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-henry-lewes/)

> [To love is for the Soul to choose a companion, and travel with it along the perilous defiles and winding ways of life; mutually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-henry-lewes/to-love-is-for-the-soul-to-choose-a-companion-and-travel-with-it/)

[George Henry Lewes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-henry-lewes/)

[Explore all 109 George Henry Lewes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-henry-lewes/)

## More Clear quotes

> [Self-respect and a clear conscience are powerful components of integrity and are the basis for enriching your relationships with others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-waitley/self-respect-and-a-clear-conscience-are-powerful-components-of/)

[Denis Waitley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-waitley/)

> [When I came to Chelsea, it was clear that, like many other players, I would first be loaned out. So I went to Belgium…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thorgan-hazard/when-i-came-to-chelsea-it-was-clear-that-like-many-other-players-i/)

[Thorgan Hazard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thorgan-hazard/)

> [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I think, here's what I've realized from interviewing people, and I've been very open about my Catholicism and my love of Christ and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-mohr/i-think-here-s-what-i-ve-realized-from-interviewing-people-and-i-ve/)

[Jay Mohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-mohr/)

> [If the audience likes your work, if they like you, they don't think whether you are married or have children or not. I made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dimple-kapadia/if-the-audience-likes-your-work-if-they-like-you-they-don-t-think/)

[Dimple Kapadia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dimple-kapadia/)

> [The thing about hitting kids is, think about if you were doing the same thing to another adult. Hitting your kid is really the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-braff/the-thing-about-hitting-kids-is-think-about-if-you-were-doing-the/)

[Zach Braff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-braff/)

> [Where I grew up, learning was a collective activity. But when I got to school and tried to share learning with other students that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-giroux/where-i-grew-up-learning-was-a-collective-activity-but-when-i-got-to/)

[Henry Giroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-giroux/)

> [Clear moments are so short. There is much more darkness. More ocean than terra firma. More shadow than form.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-zagajewski/clear-moments-are-so-short-there-is-much-more-darkness-more-ocean/)

[Adam Zagajewski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-zagajewski/)

> [I try to listen to all music with an open head, a clear head, try not to say just because I don't know it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ghostface-killah/i-try-to-listen-to-all-music-with-an-open-head-a-clear-head-try-not/)

[Ghostface Killah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ghostface-killah/)

> [God's Word does provide life lessons to teach us how to live. And it gives us beautiful poetry that gives voice to our human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-rothschild/god-s-word-does-provide-life-lessons-to-teach-us-how-to-live-and-it/)

[Jennifer Rothschild](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-rothschild/)

> [ We have no clear ideas of the agency of \[demonic\] spirits, nor is it necessary. The Scripture says little to satisfy our curiosity; but… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-newton/we-have-no-clear-ideas-of-the-agency-of-demonic-spirits-nor-is-it/)

[John Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-newton/)

> [I've always made it clear that I do not believe that global government is either necessary or feasible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-strong/i-ve-always-made-it-clear-that-i-do-not-believe-that-global/)

[Maurice Strong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-strong/)

> [The moment it begins to question itself, the mind becomes so clear that it starts working with itself rather than with the body's identification.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/byron-katie/the-moment-it-begins-to-question-itself-the-mind-becomes-so-clear/)

[Byron Katie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/byron-katie/)

> [Alec Wilkinson is a spare, clear, and lucid writer who works in stylistic simplicity with material that is not simple at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-matthiessen/alec-wilkinson-is-a-spare-clear-and-lucid-writer-who-works-in/)

[Peter Matthiessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-matthiessen/)

> [ I can't imagine that I would be asked that by the president-elect \[Donald Trump\], or then-president \[Barack Obama\]. But it's - I'm very clear.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-mattis/i-can-t-imagine-that-i-would-be-asked-that-by-the-president-elect/)

[James Mattis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-mattis/)

[Browse all 7,410 Clear quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clear/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Roger Bacon, a disciple of the Arabs, also insisted on the primary necessity of Mathematics, without which no other science can be known; yet by Mathematics it is clear that he meant something very different from what we mean, including under that head even dancing, singing, gesticulation, and performance on musical instruments.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "George Henry Lewes"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-henry-lewes/roger-bacon-a-disciple-of-the-arabs-also-insisted-on-the-primary/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Clear"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-henry-lewes/roger-bacon-a-disciple-of-the-arabs-also-insisted-on-the-primary/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/514/george-henry-lewes-4544_clear_roger-bacon-a-disciple-of-the-arabs-also_2863742.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/514/george-henry-lewes-4544_clear_roger-bacon-a-disciple-of-the-arabs-also_2863742.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/514/george-henry-lewes-4544_clear_roger-bacon-a-disciple-of-the-arabs-also_2863742.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Roger Bacon, a disciple of the Arabs, also insisted on the primary necessity of Mathematics, without which…” — George Henry Lewes",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "George Henry Lewes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-henry-lewes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Roger Bacon, a disciple of the...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-henry-lewes/roger-bacon-a-disciple-of-the-arabs-also-insisted-on-the-primary/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-henry-lewes/roger-bacon-a-disciple-of-the-arabs-also-insisted-on-the-primary/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
