knowledge; some of these being more worthy | Pentheus, sive Curiositas" in: De than other, though all inferior and | sapentia veterum", VI: The Theban king degenerate: but it is a restitution and | Pentheus is punished with madness reinvesting (in great part) of man to the | because out of curiosity he has dared sovereignty and power (for whensoever he | to observe certain mysteries which are shall be able to call the creatures by | dedicated to Dionysos, that is: he their true names be shall again command | applied (scientific) observation to them) which he had | divine things, he did not respect the | division between LUMEN NATURALE and | LUMEN DIVINUM.--Bacon draws the same | conclusions from the myth of | Prometheus ("Prometheus, sive Status | hominis"). | on curiosity see Hans Blumenberg, "Der | Prozeß der theoretischen Neugierde", | in: DIE LEGITIMITÄT DER NEUZEIT | (Frankfurt, 1966). in his first state of creation{43}. And | 43. compare with Milton's Paradise Lost to speak plainly and clearly, it is a | Book XII discovery of all operations and pos- | sibilities of operations from immortality | (if it were possible) to the meanest | mechanical practice. And therefore | knowledge that tendeth but to satisfaction | is but as a courtesan, which is for | pleasure and not for fruit or generation. | And knowledge that tendeth to profit or | profession or glory is but as the golden | ball thrown before Atalanta{44}, which | 44. The Atalanta myth is treated by while she goeth aside and stoopeth to take | Bacon in DE SAPIENTIA VETERUM (Works, up she hindereth the | vol. VI) | This is the German translation by | Marina Münkler in: Weisheit der Alten, | hrsg. von Philipp Rippel (Frankfurt | a.M: Fischer, 1991): | XXV. Atalanta oder die Gewinnsucht | Atalanta, die für ihre Schnelligkeit | berühmt war, forderte Hippomenes mit | dem Versprechen zum Wettlauf heraus, | daß er sie im Falle seines Sieges zur | Frau nehmen dürfe, im Falle seiner | Niederlage aber sein Leben verwirke.