Wittgenstein and the Limits of Language

Wittgenstein and the Limits of Language
Author: Hanne Appelqvist
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 281
Release: 2019-11-25
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 1351202650

The limit of language is one of the most pervasive notions found in Wittgenstein’s work, both in his early Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus and his later writings. Moreover, the idea of a limit of language is intimately related to important scholarly debates on Wittgenstein’s philosophy, such as the debate between the so-called traditional and resolute interpretations, Wittgenstein’s stance on transcendental idealism, and the philosophical import of Wittgenstein’s latest work On Certainty. This collection includes thirteen original essays that provide a comprehensive overview of the various ways in which Wittgenstein appeals to the limit of language at different stages of his philosophical development. The essays connect the idea of a limit of language to the most important themes discussed by Wittgenstein—his conception of logic and grammar, the method of philosophy, the nature of the subject, and the foundations of knowledge—as well as his views on ethics, aesthetics, and religion. The essays also relate Wittgenstein’s thought to his contemporaries, including Carnap, Frege, Heidegger, Levinas, and Moore.

Wittgenstein: A Very Short Introduction

Wittgenstein: A Very Short Introduction
Author: A. C. Grayling
Publisher: OUP Oxford
Total Pages: 160
Release: 2001-02-22
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 0191540382

Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889-1951) was an extraordinarily original philospher, whose influence on twentieth-century thinking goes well beyond philosophy itself. In this book, which aims to make Wittgenstein's thought accessible to the general non-specialist reader, A. C. Grayling explains the nature and impact of Wittgenstein's views. He describes both his early and later philosophy, the differences and connections between them, and gives a fresh assessment of Wittgenstein's continuing influence on contemporary thought. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

Wittgenstein on Language and Thought

Wittgenstein on Language and Thought
Author: Thornton Tim Thornton
Publisher: Edinburgh University Press
Total Pages: 256
Release: 2019-08-08
Genre: PHILOSOPHY
ISBN: 1474473245

This book defends and outlines the key issues surrounding the philosophy of content as demonstrated in Wittgenstein's Philosophical Investigations. The text shows how Wittgenstein's critical arguments concerning mind and meaning are destructive of much recent work in the philosophy of thought and language, including the representationalist orthodoxy. These issues are related to the work of Davidson, Rorty and McDowell among others.

Wittgenstein on Thought, Language and Philosophy

Wittgenstein on Thought, Language and Philosophy
Author: Christoffer Gefwert
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 334
Release: 2017-11-22
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 1351731432

This title was first published in 2000: What was Wittgenstein's relation to "theory of meaning" in his post-1937 writings and what was his characterization of "philosophy" ? How does "philosophy" in Wittgenstein's later writings differ from what is usually accepted in modern academic 'analytic' philosophy? This book discusses problems encountered in looking at Wittgenstein's texts after-1937, focusing particularly on whether the problem of philosophy amounts to a systematic or a theoretical activity. Arguing that philosophy can be characterized as a form of conceptual investigation, Gefwert aims to demonstrate that a theoretical view does not correspond to Wittgenstein's conception of philosophy. For example, philosophy is not transcendental as he thought it was before 1929. Neither is philosophical language universal as Wittgenstein 1929-1936 thought it was. Proposing that a philosophical conceptual investigation is analogous to a psychotherapeutical session of Freud, with the common aim to dissolve the conceptual problems in language that haunt us in our everyday life, Gefwert's examination of the post-1937 writings of Wittgenstein concludes that "philosophical investigation" is a very different activity than that assumed by the Logical Positives and others adhering to a theoretical view.

Wittgenstein and Davidson on Language, Thought, and Action

Wittgenstein and Davidson on Language, Thought, and Action
Author: Claudine Verheggen
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 265
Release: 2017-10-05
Genre: Body, Mind & Spirit
ISBN: 1107093767

Wittgenstein and Davidson are two of the most influential and controversial figures of twentieth-century philosophy. However, whereas Wittgenstein is often regarded as a deflationary philosopher, Davidson is considered to be a theory builder and systematic philosopher par excellence. Consequently, little work has been devoted to comparing their philosophies with each other. In this volume of new essays, leading scholars show that in fact there is much that the two share. By focusing on the similarities between Wittgenstein and Davidson, their essays present compelling defences of their views and develop more coherent and convincing approaches than either philosopher was able to propose on his own. They show how philosophically fruitful and constructive reflection on Wittgenstein and Davidson continues to be, and how relevant the writings of both philosophers are to current debates in philosophy of mind, language, and action.

Elucidating the Tractatus

Elucidating the Tractatus
Author: Marie McGinn
Publisher: OUP Oxford
Total Pages: 332
Release: 2006-11-16
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 0191529591

Discussion of Wittgenstein's Tractatus is currently dominated by two opposing interpretations of the work: a metaphysical or realist reading and the 'resolute' reading of Diamond and Conant. Marie McGinn's principal aim in this book is to develop an alternative interpretative line, which rejects the idea, central to the metaphysical reading, that Wittgenstein sets out to ground the logic of our language in features of an independently constituted reality, but which allows that he aims to provide positive philosophical insights into how language functions. McGinn takes as a guiding principle the idea that we should see Wittgenstein's early work as an attempt to eschew philosophical theory and to allow language itself to reveal how it functions. By this account, the aim of the work is to elucidate what language itself makes clear, namely, what is essential to its capacity to express thoughts that are true or false. However, the early Wittgenstein undertakes this descriptive project in the grip of a set of preconceptions concerning the essence of language that determine both how he conceives the problem and the approach he takes to the task of clarification. Nevertheless, the Tractatus contains philosophical insights, achieved despite his early preconceptions, that form the foundation of his later philosophy. The anti-metaphysical interpretation that is presented includes a novel reading of the problematic opening sections of the Tractatus, in which the apparently metaphysical status of Wittgenstein's remarks is shown to be an illusion. The book includes a discussion of the philosophical background to the Tractatus, a comprehensive interpretation of Wittgenstein's early views of logic and language, and an interpretation of the remarks on solipsism. The final chapter is a discussion of the relation between the early and the later philosophy that articulates the fundamental shift in Wittgenstein's approach to the task of understanding how language functions and reveal the still more fundamental continuity in his conception of his philosophical task.

Wittgenstein on Thought and Will

Wittgenstein on Thought and Will
Author: Roger Teichmann
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 195
Release: 2015-04-24
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 1317432231

This book examines in detail Ludwig Wittgenstein’s ideas on thought, thinking, will and intention, as those ideas developed over his lifetime. It also puts his ideas into context by a comparison both with preceding thinkers and with subsequent ones. The first chapter gives an account of the historical and philosophical background, discussing such thinkers as Plato, Descartes, Berkeley, Frege and Russell. The final chapter looks at the legacy of, and reactions to, Wittgenstein. These two chapters frame the central three chapters, devoted to Wittgenstein’s ideas on thought and will. Chapter 2 discusses the sense in which both thought and will represent, or are about, reality; Chapter 3 considers Wittgenstein’s critique of the picture of an "inner process", and the role that behaviour and context play in his views on thought and will; while Chapter 4 centres on the question "What sort of thing is it that thinks or wills?", in particular examining Wittgenstein’s ideas concerning the first person ("I") and concerning statements like "I am thinking" or "I intend to do X".

Knowledge, Language and Mind

Knowledge, Language and Mind
Author: António Marques
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter
Total Pages: 204
Release: 2012-10-01
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 3110284243

Wittgenstein's Philosophical Investigations is arguably one of the most influential books of the 20th century. It threw a new light on the workings of language and mind, contributing significantly to the understanding of human knowledge. Featuring essays by internationally renowned scholars, this book explores the development of Wittgenstein's ideas in the direction of the Investigations. It offers a comprehensive view of some of the most disputable issues in the study of Wittgenstein's masterpiece and reassesses its relevance within contemporary philosophical debate. Contributors: Alberto Arruda (New University of Lisbon), João Vergílio Gallerani Cuter (University of S. Paulo), P. M. S. Hacker (University of Oxford), Nathan Hauthaler (University of London), Emiliano La Licata (University of Palermo), Constantine Sandis (Oxford Brookes University), Nikolay Milkov (University of Paderborn), Maria Filomena Molder (New University of Lisbon), Jesús Padilla Gálvez (University of Castilla-La Mancha, Toledo) and Rui Sampaio da Silva (University of the Azores).

Wittgenstein on Rules and Private Language

Wittgenstein on Rules and Private Language
Author: Saul A. Kripke
Publisher: Harvard University Press
Total Pages: 164
Release: 1982
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 9780674954014

Table of Contents " Preface " Introductory " The Wittgensteinian Paradox " The Solution and the 'Private Language' Argument " Postscript Wittgenstein and Other Minds " Index.

Wittgenstein: From Mysticism to Ordinary Language

Wittgenstein: From Mysticism to Ordinary Language
Author: Russell Nieli
Publisher: State University of New York Press
Total Pages: 280
Release: 2016-01-21
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 1438414714

Wittgenstein: From Mysticism to Ordinary Language presents the Tractatus as a work of mystic theology intended to direct the reader to a transcendental plane from which human existence can be viewed from the divine perspective. More than any other work on Wittgenstein, this study integrates text material with personal biographical information, especially information dealing with his spiritual and psychological states. The result is a fresh, coherent, and extremely illuminating picture of Wittgenstein, successfully avoiding the pitfalls of either psychological reductionism or unfaithfulness to the text. It is bold without being reckless, passionately argued without being doctrinaire, and makes a very powerful and persuasive case for its main thesis.