Ludwig Wittgenstein.docx
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Ludwig Wittgenstein.docx
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LudwigWittgenstein
LudwigWittgenstein
LudwigWittgensteinisoneofthemostinfluentialphilosophersofthetwentiethcentury,andregardedbysomeasthemostimportantsinceImmanuelKant.HisearlyworkwasinfluencedbythatofArthurSchopenhauerand,especially,byhisteacherBertrandRussellandbyGottlobFrege,whobecamesomethingofafriend.ThisworkculminatedintheTractatusLogico-Philosophicus,theonlyphilosophybookthatWittgensteinpublishedduringhislifetime.Itclaimedtosolveallthemajorproblemsofphilosophyandwasheldinespeciallyhighesteembytheanti-metaphysicallogicalpositivists.TheTractatusisbasedontheideathatphilosophicalproblemsarisefrommisunderstandingsofthelogicoflanguage,andittriestoshowwhatthislogicis.Wittgenstein’slaterwork,principallyhisPhilosophicalInvestigations,sharesthisconcernwithlogicandlanguage,buttakesadifferent,lesstechnical,approachtophilosophicalproblems.Thisbookhelpedtoinspireso-calledordinarylanguagephilosophy.Thisstyleofdoingphilosophyhasfallensomewhatoutoffavor,butWittgenstein’sworkonrule-followingandprivatelanguageisstillconsideredimportant,andhislaterphilosophyisinfluentialinagrowingnumberoffieldsoutsidephilosophy.
1.Life
LudwigJosefJohannWittgenstein,bornonApril26th1889inVienna,Austria,wasacharismaticenigma.HehasbeensomethingofacultfigurebutshunnedpublicityandevenbuiltanisolatedhutinNorwaytoliveincompleteseclusion.Hissexualitywasambiguousbuthewasprobablygay;howactivelysoisstillamatterofcontroversy.Hislifeseemstohavebeendominatedbyanobsessionwithmoralandphilosophicalperfection,summedupinthesubtitleofRayMonk’sexcellentbiographyWittgenstein:
TheDutyofGenius.
HisconcernwithmoralperfectionledWittgensteinatonepointtoinsistonconfessingtoseveralpeoplevarioussins,includingthatofallowingotherstounderestimatetheextentofhis‘Jewishness’.HisfatherKarlWittgenstein’sparentswerebornJewishbutconvertedtoProtestantismandhismotherLeopoldine(neeKalmus)wasCatholic,butherfatherwasofJewishdescent.WittgensteinhimselfwasbaptizedinaCatholicchurchandwasgivenaCatholicburial,althoughbetweenbaptismandburialhewasneitherapracticingnorabelievingCatholic.
TheWittgensteinfamilywaslargeandwealthy.KarlWittgensteinwasoneofthemostsuccessfulbusinessmenintheAustro-HungarianEmpire,leadingtheironandsteelindustrythere.TheWittgensteins’homeattractedpeopleofculture,especiallymusicians,includingthecomposerJohannesBrahms,whowasafriendofthefamily.MusicremainedimportanttoWittgensteinthroughouthislife.Sodiddarkermatters.Ludwigwastheyoungestofeightchildren,andofhisfourbrothers,threecommittedsuicide.
Asforhiscareer,WittgensteinstudiedmechanicalengineeringinBerlinandin1908wenttoManchester,Englandtodoresearchinaeronautics,experimentingwithkites.Hisinterestinengineeringledtoaninterestinmathematicswhichinturngothimthinkingaboutphilosophicalquestionsaboutthefoundationsofmathematics.HevisitedthemathematicianandphilosopherGottlobFrege(1848-1925),whorecommendedthathestudywithBertrandRussell(1872-1970)inCambridge.AtCambridgeWittgensteingreatlyimpressedRussellandG.E.Moore(1873-1958),andbeganworkonlogic.
Whenhisfatherdiedin1913Wittgensteininheritedafortune,whichhequicklygaveaway.Whenwarbrokeoutthenextyear,hevolunteeredfortheAustrianarmy.Hecontinuedhisphilosophicalworkandwonseveralmedalsforbraveryduringthewar.TheresultofhisthinkingonlogicwastheTractatusLogico-PhilosophicuswhichwaseventuallypublishedinEnglishin1922withRussell’shelp.ThiswastheonlybookWittgensteinpublishedduringhislifetime.Havingthus,inhisopinion,solvedalltheproblemsofphilosophy,WittgensteinbecameanelementaryschoolteacherinruralAustria,wherehisapproachwasstrictandunpopular,butapparentlyeffective.Hespent1926-28meticulouslydesigningandbuildinganausterehouseinViennaforhissisterGretl.
In1929hereturnedtoCambridgetoteachatTrinityCollege,recognizingthatinfacthehadmoreworktodoinphilosophy.HebecameprofessorofphilosophyatCambridgein1939.DuringWorldWarIIheworkedasahospitalporterinLondonandasaresearchtechnicianinNewcastle.Afterthewarhereturnedtouniversityteachingbutresignedhisprofessorshipin1947toconcentrateonwriting.MuchofthishedidinIreland,preferringisolatedruralplacesforhiswork.By1949hehadwrittenallthematerialthatwaspublishedafterhisdeathasPhilosophicalInvestigations,arguablyhismostimportantwork.HespentthelasttwoyearsofhislifeinVienna,OxfordandCambridgeandkeptworkinguntilhediedofprostatecancerinCambridgeinApril1951.HisworkfromtheselastyearshasbeenpublishedasOnCertainty.Hislastwordswere,“TellthemI’vehadawonderfullife.”
2.TractatusLogico-Philosophicus
WittgensteintoldLudwigvonFickerthatthepointoftheTractatuswasethical.Intheprefacetothebookhesaysthatitsvalueconsistsintwothings:
“thatthoughtsareexpressedinit”and“thatitshowshowlittleisachievedwhentheseproblemsaresolved.”Theproblemshereferstoaretheproblemsofphilosophydefined,wemaysuppose,bytheworkofFregeandRussell,andperhapsalsoSchopenhauer.AttheendofthebookWittgensteinsays“Mypropositionsserveaselucidationsinthefollowingway:
anyonewhounderstandsmeeventuallyrecognizesthemasnonsensical”[emphasisadded].WhattomakeoftheTractatus,itsauthor,andthepropositionsitcontains,then,isnoeasymatter.
Thebookcertainlydoesnotseemtobeaboutethics.Itconsistsofnumberedpropositionsinsevensets.Proposition1.2belongstothefirstsetandisacommentonproposition1.Proposition1.21isaboutproposition1.2,andsoon.Theseventhsetcontainsonlyoneproposition,thefamous“Whatwecannotspeakaboutwemustpassoverinsilence.”
Someimportantandrepresentativepropositionsfromthebookarethese:
1Theworldisallthatisthecase.
4.01Apropositionisapictureofreality.
4.0312…Myfundamentalideaisthatthe‘logicalconstants’arenotrepresentatives;thattherecanbenorepresentativesofthelogicoffacts.
4.121…Propositionsshowthelogicalformofreality.Theydisplayit.
4.1212Whatcanbeshown,cannotbesaid.
4.5…Thegeneralformofapropositionis:
Thisishowthingsstand.
5.43…allthepropositionsoflogicsaythesamething,towitnothing.
5.4711Togivetheessenceofapropositionmeanstogivetheessenceofalldescription,andthustheessenceoftheworld.
5.6Thelimitsofmylanguagemeanthelimitsofmyworld.
HereandelsewhereintheTractatusWittgensteinseemstobesayingthattheessenceoftheworldandoflifeis:
Thisishowthingsare.Oneistemptedtoadd“–dealwithit.”ThatseemstofitwhatCoraDiamondhascalledhis“acceptandendure”ethics,buthesaysthatthepropositionsoftheTractatusaremeaningless,notprofoundinsights,ethicalorotherwise.Whatarewetomakeofthis?
ManycommentatorsignoreordismisswhatWittgensteinsaidabouthisworkanditsaims,andinsteadlookforregularphilosophicaltheoriesinhiswork.ThemostfamousoftheseintheTractatusisthe“picturetheory”ofmeaning.Accordingtothistheorypropositionsaremeaningfulinsofarastheypicturestatesofaffairsormattersofempiricalfact.Anythingnormative,supernaturalor(onemightsay)metaphysicalmust,itthereforeseems,benonsense.ThishasbeenaninfluentialreadingofpartsoftheTractatus.Unfortunately,thisreadingleadstoseriousproblemssincebyitsownlightstheTractatus’useofwordslike“object,”“reality”and“world”isillegitimate.Theseconceptsarepurelyformalorapriori.Astatementsuchas“Thereareobjectsintheworld”doesnotpictureastateofaffairs.Ratheritis,asitwere,presupposedbythenotionofastateofaffairs.The“picturetheory”thereforedeniessensetojustthekindofstatementsofwhichtheTractatusiscomposed,totheframeworksupportingthepicturetheoryitself.InthiswaytheTractatuspullstherugoutfromunderitsownfeet.
IfthepropositionsoftheTractatusarenonsensicalthentheysurelycannotputforwardthepicturetheoryofmeaning,oranyothertheory.Nonsenseisnonsense.However,thisisnottosaythattheTractatusitselfiswithoutvalue.Wittgenstein’saimseemstohavebeentoshowupasnonsensethethingsthatphilosophers(himselfincluded)aretemptedtosay.Philosophicaltheories,hesuggests,areattemptstoanswerquestionsthatarenotreallyquestionsatall(theyarenonsense),ortosolveproblemsthatarenotreallyproblems.Hesaysinproposition4.003that:
Mostofthepropositionsandquestionsofphilosophersarisefromourfailuretounderstandthelogicofourlanguage.(Theybelongtothesameclassasthequestionwhetherthegoodismoreorlessidenticalthanthebeautiful.)Anditisnotsurprisingthatthedeepestproblemsareinfactnotproblemsatall.
Philosophers,then,havethetaskofpresentingthelogicofourlanguageclearly.Thiswillnotsolveimportantproblemsbutitwillshowthatsomethingsthatwetaketobeimportantproblemsarereallynotproblemsatall.Thegainisnotwisdombutanabsenceofconfusion.Thisisnotarejectionofphilosophyorlogic.Wittgensteintookphilosophicalpuzzlementveryseriouslyindeed,buthethoughtthatitneededdissolvingbyanalysisratherthansolvingbytheproductionoftheories.TheTractatuspresentsitselfasakeyforuntyingaseriesofkn
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