Customer Reviews:
Excellent biography brings Wittgenstein to life.......2007-07-03
The positivist, analytical tradition in philosophy is what most people would associate Wittgenstein with in the first instance, provided they had heard of him in the first place. Because of his, and because of his philosophical attacks on the meaningfulness of the concepts of metaphysics, theology, spirituality and even most of logic, he is often depicted as some sort of cold, unfeeling Grand Master sitting on a pinnacle of Genius of Philosophy. But as Ray Monk's biography shows with much vigour, he was in reality a very troubled, confused, unhappy, spiritual, and above all very human person.
Making use of all the manuscripts available as well as the many correspondences of Wittgenstein, Ray Monk, a philosopher at the U of Southampton, is able to show the Wittgenstein we know as a person that one could not only sympathize with, but even pity. Because as it appears from the biography, Wittgenstein was a deeply unhappy man. His relationships were, from early life on, troubled - not as often supposed because of their bisexual nature, but rather because of his general revulsion to what he calls "sensuality" on the whole, and his tendency to flee from the people he loved. His friendships fared no better, since Wittgenstein was both fickle and dominating, unable to deal with disagreement and very strong in his views even on very minor things of daily life - which leads to repeated diary notes and comments by everyone, from Keynes to Russell, on how talking to Wittgenstein was simply too exhausting. Add to this a constant wrestling with the fact that Wittgenstein was very religious, yet thought all religious theory meaningless babble, and you have a recipe for depression.
Monk of course also pays attention to the content of his philosophical views, and makes sure that these are, in broad outlines, accessible and useful to a general public. For specialists and professional philosophers this will rather be a tantalizing overview than a sufficient working out of Wittgenstein's philosophical views, but fortunately Monk has also written several works of secondary literature on the subject, so that people can read those if they enjoy this biography (which I would certainly read first): How to Read Wittgenstein. What Monk does best is to integrate these philosophical viewpoints into the larger narrative of his life, precisely as a good biography of a philosopher requires. The only thing I found somewhat unsatisfying was why Wittgenstein changed his views so strongly after the Tractatus, more or less rejecting the entire foundation this work was based on. One would have expected something personal to reflect as radically the change in philosophy, but either it isn't there, or Monk doesn't bring it out.
The style of writing Monk uses is very pleasant, and he avoids being opinionated either way (though he seems to sympathize with Wittgenstein's spiritual problematic a lot more than I would). An appendix to the book also deals with the (in)famous Bartley's commentaries on Wittgenstein (Wittgenstein (Modern)), in particular those parts dealing with his sex life. Ray Monk very sensibly here chooses the middle road - it is quite beyond any doubt that Wittgenstein had homosexual relations, but the idea of him prowling the Prater in search for rentboys belongs firmly in the domain of fantasy.
I devoured the 600-page biography of this neurotic genius in one weekend, owing to the fascinating nature of the subject as well as Monk's effective and lively portrayal of him. Very much recommended to a wide public.
Integrity and Introspection.......2007-06-26
This is biography the way it should be written--focused on what made the subject important, and providing background context only to the degree necessary to situate people and events. Wittgenstein's temperament and personality were so inextricably bound up in his thought that any distinction evaporates. He thought like the person he was: ascetic, intuitive, and introverted. He questioned the value of his doing philosophy, as he questioned the value of his own thinking. His sense of duty was the obligation to speak the truth, no matter how awkward...or to be silent.
Review: From the Bottom of My Heart.......2007-05-28
After reading this biography it suffices that I don't read any other.
A thorough picture of both the man and his thought.......2007-02-07
I read this book because I had a very basic idea of LW's life and philosophy but really didn't feel that I understood them in any meaningful sense. I wasn't sure if my interest in either would withstand a 600 page biography, but thanks to both the author and the subject it was a pleasure to read.
The book is very thoroughly researched, with a ton of quoted material from Wittgenstein's letters and journals, much of it apparently not published elsewhere. This gives the book the considerable virtue of showing us what Wittgenstein was feeling/thinking rather than telling us (a distinction which LW would approve of).
The other thing I liked about it was that Monk gives us a thorough treatment (for a biography, that is) of his philosophical views and their evolution. The fact that the author comes from a philosophical background really helps here. He does an admirable job of placing many of Wittgenstein's difficult quotes and ideas into the larger context of his system of thought. Of course, I'm not knowledgeable enough to know whether Monk is wrong in any part of his interpretation, but if he happens to be, it's not because he doesn't know what he's talking about.
Overall, I thought the book had the perfect balance of biography and philosophical explanation. The philosophical parts were almost always linked with the portrait of Wittgenstein as a person, so they didn't weigh the book down or break up the narrative flow. Maybe the best way to sum things up is that although the book made Wittgenstein a lot less mysterious to me, I don't find him or his ideas any less fascinating after reading it.
No help.......2005-04-13
I read the book but gained nothing as far as understanding Wittgenstein is concerned.
Book Description
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.
Customer Reviews:
Excellent introduction to Wittgenstein.......2007-06-05
This is an ideal overview of Wittgenstein for those looking to get an initial grasp on his work. Grayling's style is admirably clear and accessible, which is especially valuable because the writing of Wittgenstein himself can be notoriously difficult and cryptic. The book provides a well-organized, concise summary of the Wittgenstein's two philosophic periods (earlier and later). While you might feel a little lost or confused when Grayling is explaining Wittgenstein's writings, don't worry -- at the end of tbe summaries of both periods Grayling offers critical analyses where he reveals that he is also confused by some things, and in his analyses he will probably address many of the questions you have. While this book isn't easy, and a little philosophic background would probably be helpful, given the diffculty of the subject matter you can't really expect it to be much easier. Highly recommended -- would that there was an intro of this quality for every philosopher.
Love the Wittgy, hate the Grayling........2007-01-03
I love the VSI series, but this volume was a bit of a disappointment. Mr. Grayling is very repetitive, and I do not agree with his critique of Wittgentein's later philosophy. Furthermore, he claims that it has had little influence on today's philosophy, which just seems completely false to me. The naturalization of epistemology is completely in accord with Wittgenstein's ideas, Kuhn's 'paradigms' are a version of Wittgenstein's 'forms of life', not to mention the current emphasis on practices. If Wittgenstein is not an influential figure in today's philosophy, Mr. Grayling, then who do you think is??
A gem!.......2006-07-23
This book is astounding! I have never before encountered a short introduction that so clearly, concisely, accurately or effectively communicates a complex and largely obscure subject. As a result, this book is a remarkable achievement in its own right, not only illuminating the mysteries of Wittgenstein's very difficult work, but doing so in a way that will serve as a timeless model of successful communication. That is not to say that this book is `easy' or that Wittgenstein's complex ideas have been made simple. I only say that the author has presented those ideas in ways that put them within the reach of intelligent readers who are prepared to work in exchange for a very gratifying intellectual return. With Grayling as a guide, Wittgenstein is accessible! Incredible!
Clearly written and critically sound.......2006-05-28
Grayling's introduction to Wittgenstein's early and later works is by far the most critical, when comparing the piece to other recent introductory attempts by other qualified writers. Generally, the author does an exceptional job, as was his stated intention, at writing this "introduction" for an uninformed audience, one with little or no knowledge of Wittgenstein or philosophy in general.
The overall tone of the writing is one of scepticism, a serious doubt as to Wittgenstein's importance in terms of his contribution to 20th century philosophy. Considering the space provided, Grayling's argument(s) are thorough and persuasive in parts, however his attempt at objectivity, to then give the reader incentive to continue investigation into the subject, can be questioned, (if objectivity was actually his aim) as the reader comes away believing Wittgenstein to be more of a poet, a creative designer of witty aphorisms than a serious philosopher, as his concluding remarks make quite clear:
"But I find that when one advances beyond the manner and reflects on the content, the irresistible feeling is this: that the journey through Wittgenstein's circuitous, metaphorical, sometimes opaque negations and suggestions is long; but the distance it takes is a short." (P. 134)
In other words, when the reader wades through Wittgenstein's unnecessary symbolism, witty metaphors and dense, unpacked arguments, the actual content is not as profound as we were first led believe. All in all, though, Grayling believes the Austrian to be one of the great "personalities" of philosophy, but as a philosopher, will be soon forgotten: however, as he states, time will tell.
Having said that, Grayling is an excellent writer having to distil a body of complex work that has been analysed and debated for over half a century.
Wittgenstein's first major work, the `Tractatus', a notorious complex thesis, was summarized and explained clearly, even including a short lesson on basic logic, making the work much easier to grasp. The later philosophy, `Philosophical Investigations' and others, which include the philosopher's notions of private language, language-games, use and rules, shed light on these concepts.
Graylings arguments on cultural and cognitive relativism were exceptionally clear and interesting, arguing against Wittgenstein's "form of life" concepts. Unfortunately these arguments needed elaboration, but the author was under severe space constraints.
An excellent introduction to Wittgenstein's philosophy and overall, critically sound.
Overbite.......2005-11-02
Unfortunately, Grayling's Very Short Introduction succumbs to a pitfall typical of a very short introduction. Put simply: despite all the well-known risks of the genre, the author can't resist biting off more than the small chewing space of 132 pages can accomodate. The first 100 or so pages are informative enough, providing appropriate highlights of Wittgenstein's life and work. Of course, a lot gets unavoidably left out. Still, the contours come through with sufficient clarity to provide a good rudimentary understanding, though I wish he had pointed out more emphatically the critical nature of both phases -- how each in its own way draws bounds on what can and cannot be meaningfully stated. For it's here, I believe, that the general reader would find the Austrian thinker's conclusions most relevant to her own concerns.
The problem arises, not surprisingly, when the text turns from exposition to evaluation. To present the private language argument, as Grayling does, as inherently inconsistent or the form-of-life argument as a variety of cognitive relativism simply requires more than several pages of potted reasoning, to say the least. In fact, these are complex and controversial topics about which entire volumes have been written. To be sure, I don't object to pointing out avenues of criticism even in a very short account; I do however object to the assurance with which these objections are presented here. For such confidence goes quite beyond what the book's brief compass can support and therewith does a disservice to the unwary reader. Moreover, in assessing the Austrian phiosopher's influence, one key facet of his later thought should be kept in mind. The point of doing philosophy is to let the fly out of the bottle, not to entrap further generations in ever-more futile buzzing around the so-called perenial problems that have beguiled thinkers for centuries. In that sense, Wittgenstein's method presents an anti-institutional thrust: it seeks to dissolve problems, not perpetuate them. Thus his way conflicts at a pretty basic level with the institutional interests of academic philosophy which depend to a great extent on perpetuating those perennial problems. Is it therefore surprising that his therapeutic approach has found little favor among philosophy departments, whatever the ultimate merits. I don't claim this sociological point as exhaustive, but I do think it's an undernoted factor in the general blunting of his legacy.
Anyway, this slim volume comes as a disappoitment given Grayling's previous works, while there are a number of general intoductions that deal more sensitively with Wittgenstein's later work than this one.
Book Description
Ludwig Wittgenstein, who died in Cambridge in 1951, is one of the most powerful influences on contemporary philosophy, yet he shunned publicity and was essentially a private man. His friend Norman Malcolm (himself an eminent philosopher) wrote this remarkably vivid personal memoir of Wittgenstein, which was published in 1958 and was immediately recognized as a moving and truthful portrait of this gifted, difficult man. This edition includes also the complete text of the fifty-seven letters which Wittgenstein wrote to Malcolm over a period of eleven years. Apart from the quotations in the Memoir these letters are previously unpublished. They reveal how much friendships mattered to Wittgenstein, and how concerned he was for the health and well-being of his friends. His human qualities become evident; he advises, warns, jokes. and is grateful and affectionate. The volume also features a concise biographical sketch by another leading philosopher who was a friend of Wittgenstein, Georg Henrik von Wright. Much has been published about Wittgenstein since his death, but nothing brings us closer to the man himself than this modest classic of philosophical biography.
Customer Reviews:
Biographical Overview plus Intimate Memoir.......2006-12-16
This volume contains two independant pieces of writing about the giant of 20th Century philosophy, Ludwig Wittgenstein. The first, shorter Biographical Sketch by Cambridge colleague, Georg Henrick Von Wright covers the broad outlines of Wittgenstein's life and work in the first 22 pages of this slim volume. The remaining 78 pages are occupied by one of Wittgenstein's more influential and dedicated American students, Norman Malcolm, and it deals only with Malcolm's personal experiences with Wittgenstein from mid-1938 at Cambridge to Wittgenstein's death on April 27, 1951.
While Von Wright's piece is an essential introduction, it is Malcolm's memoir which had me reading this slim volume over and over as I began my studies of modern Philosophy in 1963. This was before any of the several long biographies now available, and long before the notority of the little book 'Wittgenstein's Poker'. At this time, we only had Wittgenstein's two major works, the 'Philosphical Investigations' and the earlier 'Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus' plus the 'Blue and Brown Books' and, I believe, another slim volume of aphorisms, 'Zettel' (German for 'notes').
Malcolm was one of a core group of students who seemed to see be apostles to Wittgenstein's philosophical Messiah. I especially recall meeting another of Wittgenstein's students, Stephen Toulmin, who spoke of Wittgenstein with a particular reverence reserved for only two or three of the century's greatest thinkers such as Einstein, Stravinsky, and Picasso.
Wittgenstein's life seemed to be a great contradiction, as he seemed to suffer great bouts of depression and anxiety, and working on philosophy seemed to give him all the pain of childbirth. And yet, when he was told he had but a few days to live, he said 'Great! Tell them I've had a wonderful life.'
After all these years, I still find lessons from Wittgenstein's life in this little book. That may be because I practically memorized it 40 years ago, but one can find much worse exemplars for life than the memorable Ludwig Wittgenstein.
I'm surprised to see how pricy this little book has become. Fortunately it is durably bound, as my 40 year old copy is still in good shape, so don't be too reluctant to acquire a used copy, as long as it is not marked up.
Human side of an Austere Philosopher.......2005-09-03
Norman Malcolm's memoir of his friend and colleague, Wittgenstein, is a very personal account of the man that gives the reader a human side to this enigmatic and austere philosopher. Malcolm's descriptions of Wittgenstein delivering his unorthodox lectures in the philosopher's minimalist rooms at Cambridge - students crammed sitting and standing shoulder to shoulder, the philosopher glaring at any late comer, gesticulating in silence like a suffering mime to achieve a crystalline synthesis of thought, has now become legend. Wittgenstein was an extemporaneous lecturer, never using notes, uncannily picking up the thread of his thoughts from the previous weeks lecture. Malcolm admits that he didn't really begin to understand Wittgenstein until years after attending these "conversations". However this memoir is not about Wittgenstein's philosophy, but about Wittgenstein the man, by way of personal anecdotes and an eleven-year correspondence up until only thirteen days before Wittgenstein's death from prostate cancer.
There are many moving and humorous anecdotes in this memoir, however two in particular really stand out: While visiting Cambridge, Malcolm and his wife would occasionally have Wittgenstein over for dinner. More often than not, he would insist on doing the dishes, but preferred to do them in the bathtub with extremely hot water and a fair amount of soap. This way, he insisted, was the only method to wash dishes to ensure their utter cleanliness. He would often scold Malcolm for not drying the plates properly. This incident may seem minor, but it really exemplifies Wittgenstein's intense character, and what ever he put his attention on, it would be done to the best of his ability.
On one spring evening, after washing up, Wittgenstein, Malcolm and his wife set off on one of their many walks around campus. Wittgenstein began talking about the planets in the solar system and their relationships. He told Malcolm's wife that she was the sun and to continue walking; Malcolm was told he was the earth and to run around her, orbit, counter clockwise; Wittgenstein took the role of the moon, the most difficult, and ran around Malcolm at top speed. Anyone observing this spectacle from afar must have thought they were crazy, but Malcolm said it was extremely difficult and exhilarating experience.
Overall the text is divided into three sections: a well-written biographical sketch by Wittgenstein's colleague at Cambridge, G.H. von Wright. The second section is Malcolm's moving and humorous memoir, ending in the third section with a collection of correspondence from Wittgenstein to Malcolm spanning over eleven years. It is these letters that show the human side of Wittgenstein, his tireless work ethic and his concern for the well being of his friends.
If you have any interest in the character of this interesting philosopher, Malcolm's memoir is an excellent text.
Have Monk? Still buy the Malcolm.......2005-08-23
I read the Monk biography first, then the McGuinness. They are both extremely valuable. But, O my, the Malcolm! Do get this one too. It is wonderful.
PEEPS
A vivid memory.......2004-09-07
Norman Malcolm was a close friend of Ludwig Wittgenstein's. They exchanged many letters and the reader can discover the 56 letters that Wittgenstein sent to Malcolm between March 26 1940 to April 16 1951 in this book.
Norman Malcolm does not discuss Wittgenstein's philosophical works - although he attended a respectable number of his lectures - but describes the philosopher in his daily life, his tastes, his talks with his fellows in Cambridge. It is interesting to learn that Wittgenstein was an emphatic talker both while lecturing and conversing privately, that he dressed as simply as possible although he had rigorous standards of cleanliness and that his room at Trinity College was austerely furnished.
His lectures were quite original. He didn't address his audience in a formal way but the meetings - in his room where the members of the class had to bring chairs - were rather a conversation during which Wittgenstein carried on original research. He was usually impatient and easily angered and his students often feared him. Making friendship with Wittgenstein was very exacting since his extreme harshness could rebuke a friend. Malcolm often experienced that Wittgenstein had a tendency to be suspicious of motives and character. It was always a strain to be with Wittgenstein because of the intellectual demands of his conversation and his ruthless severity. This was due to his passionate love of truth and that is the reason why his philosophical thoughts tortured and exhausted him. He detested academic life, he could not stand the society of his academic colleagues and could not suffer all forms of affectation and insincerity. His mood was often sombre because of the difficulty of achieving understanding in philosophy. As he struggled to work through a problem, his listeners felt that they were in the presence of real suffering. That may explain his strong inclination to pessimism, a feeling that was often close to despair. Another source of torment was that he felt himself to be a failure as a teacher, a profession he abandoned after a few years to devote himself exclusively to philosophy.
Towards the end of his life, Wittgenstein spent long months with Malcolm and his wife in America where Malcolm could witness Wittgenstein's increasing difficulty to concentrate and think, mainly because of his fragile health. A moving memory of one of the greatest philosophers of the 20th century.
The Philosophical Personality.......2001-12-19
Malcolm's memoir, written as a straightforward account of his relationship with Wittgenstein over a number of years, vividly brings to life the odd charisma of the philosopher. It is easy to see, just from Malcolm's account, how Wittgenstein's personality influenced or overwhelmed people around him. Malcolm himself seems to have avoided a full dose of the spell, and simply accepted Wittgenstein as he was, which makes him a superior memoirist. (Furthermore, Malcolm was scrupulious enough that, upon reading his memior, I guessed from it that Wittgenstein was gay, long before I read any of the more heavy-handed books that claim new revelations about the philosopher. It was all already there for them to see, if they would just look at it.) Malcolm's accounts of conversations with Wittgenstein, and even more so the selection of letters included at the end of the volume, amply display the philosopher's character, as well as revealing his rather dry and odd wit and ability to produce aphoristic phrases of great, and sometimes comic, insight. I would strongly recommend giving it to a student who has taken a semester or two of philosophy; even though it won't tell him much about the content of Wittgenstein's actual philosophy, it does provide a serious, and fascinating, example of a way to approach philosophy, and makes the subject seem like it can be an exciting and live quest.
Book Description
In 1938 Wittgenstein delivered a short course of lectures on aesthetics to a small group of students at Cambridge. The present volume has been compiled from notes taken down at the time by three of the students: Rush Rhees, Yorick Smythies, and James Taylor. They have been supplemented by notes of conversations on Freud (to whom reference was made in the course on aesthetics) between Wittgenstein and Rush Rhees, and by notes of some lectures on religious belief. As very little is known of Wittgenstein's views on these subjects from his published works, these notes should be of considerable interest to students of contemporary philosophy. Further, their fresh and informal style should recommend Wittgenstein to those who find his Tractatus and Philosophical Investigations a little formidable.
Customer Reviews:
Only really suitable as supplemental reading.......2007-03-24
It's interesting how many negative votes were cast for J. Fry who stated that it's okay, but not great. We can all hero worship Wittgenstein, and of course religion and psychology are amazing, too, so this volume must be deep and illuminating, right? Not really. Wittgenstein was, arguably, one of the greatest philosophers of the 20th century, but most Wittgenstein lovers refuse to listen to Wittgenstein's own self-deprecations regarding any application of his work to anything other than as therapy for a certain kind of analytic philosophical method. Wittgenstein, like any great intellectual, had some interesting things to say about religion and culture, but he was far from a philosopher of these things. He himself disavowed the comprehensive mystical pronouncements at the end of the youthful Tractatus, though he himself continued to demonstrate some sympathies with them, mainly about the limits of philosophy to speak well about religion.
These lectures do not provide any major self-standing statement that applies Wittgenstein to religion. The best of it is simply his bringing up statements like "I believe in Judgment Day" or "The universe was created [fill in some non scientific timeperiod]" and Wittgenstein honestly saying: I'm not sure I understand what that person is really stating. I may jump to the conclusion that they are making a wrong scientific statement, but they may in fact be stating something more akin to a statement of a grammatical quality relating to a religious way of life.
But to understand what Wittgenstein means by taking that approach, one really needs to read his philosophy and even then, there is a lot of debate what it means to connect his philosophy with religion in this way. Peter Geach, Fergus Kerr, DZ Phillips, and George Lindbeck all come up with very different conclusions when doing just this. Personally, I think Lindbeck and Phillips are on the right track.
This isn't like reading a lecture by Nietzsche on an issue, and in this sense this volume is very thin in more ways than one.
Personally, I find reading "On Certainty" along with "Culture and Value" as a more valuable way of getting Wittgenstein's thoughts on these matters.
Valuable contribution to Wittgenstein corpus.......2005-09-07
This unique text contains a collection of Wittgenstein's lecture notes taken by his students Rush Rhees, James Taylor and Yorick Smithies. Their unique because of the informality of the delivery: reading these notes, one can almost imagine the philosopher seated in his flat at Cambridge, extemporaneously discussing the subjects of aesthetics, psychology and religious belief.
It has been said that these particular subjects were only superficially touched upon in Wittgenstein's main works, Tractatus and Philosophical Investigations, and because of the informality of the discussions, are therefore more accessible for anyone interested in contemporary philosophy.
Although the notes on aesthetics and religious belief are interesting, Wittgenstein's views on Freud, i.e., psychoanalysis and particularly dream language, symbology and their interpretation throws a new light on psychoanalysis, in terms of the on-going argument as to whether it can be classified a true "science". The key to psychoanalysis' power and longevity is the cleverness and charm of the various arguments it proposes. The idea that _any_ opposition to Freud is a form of "resistance" from the unconscious has persisted throughout its history. This notion, at least in the beginning of the movement, successfully thwarted any productive dialogue and criticism.
Overall, however, Wittgenstein claimed that analysis was likely to do harm, he writes,
"Because although one may discover in the course of it various things about oneself, one must have a very strong and keen and persistent criticism in order to recognize and see through the mythology that is offered or imposed on one. There is an inducement to say, `Yes, of course, it must be like that.' A powerful mythology" (P.52)
Reading these informal "notes" has given me a better understanding of Wittgenstein's process of thought and investigation into these subjects. This volume is quite small, though it is full of insight and useful for anyone interested in contemporary philosophy.
Wittgenstein on Aesthetics.......2002-07-28
This book contains lectures and discussions by Wittgenstein on topics that are not addressed in his major works: aesthetics and religious belief. The remarks were recorded by students and friends.
In his early work, the Tractatus, Wittgenstein said: Ethics and aesthetics are one. Both are "beyond" capture in a "meaningful proposition". His later philosophy has a surprising turn away from the earlier ideas.
Anyone doing aesthetics cannot ignore these remarks. Are poems important? Is laughter a concern of philosophy? The distinction betwen cause and reason is for W. at the root of a major misunderstanding in aesthetics.
W. was fascinated by St. Augustine, Cardinal Newman, George Fox, Luther. O.K. Bouwsma once remarked to me that W. had said to him that it was astounding that a man as intelligent as Cardinal Newman saw a miracle in the fact that Napoleon's troops weapons dropped from their hands in the attack on Russia.
Not bad, not great.......2000-08-28
Whatever sagacity I sought from Wittgenstein regarding religion was somewhat lacking. The conversation he has regarding religion really touches more on death than on theology. Not quite what I was looking for. The section on religion is a bit of a misnomer.
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Wittgenstein's Method: Neglected Aspects
Gordon Baker
Manufacturer: Blackwell Publishing Limited
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ASIN: 140515280X |
Book Description
For the last 15 years of his distinguished career, Gordon Baker was developing an original and radical vision of Wittgenstein 's philosophical method in the later philosophy, one which constitutes a significant departure from his celebrated period of collaboration with P.M.S. Hacker and which shares affinities with the 'New Wittgensteinians ' but is developed in much greater depth. Following his death in 2002, Baker 's collaborator and partner Katherine Morris has collected together and edited the key articles he wrote on Wittgenstein 's method during this period, and they are published here for the first time in one volume. Of the thirteen articles contained in this book, three were previously only available in French, one was published in a Brazilian journal and one was previously unpublished.Covering a range of topics central to Wittgenstein 's later work, from the private language argument, 'grammar ' and 'use ', to the conception of philosophy itself and its relation to psychoanalysis, and characteristically rooted in a fidelity to the text, these essays combine to provide a powerful revaluation of Wittgenstein 's aims and methods in his mature work from one his foremost interpreters.
Book Description
Ludwig Wittgenstein is universally recognized as one of the most original and influential philosophers of his age and as a personality of great magnetism and power. Not all who recognize his importance admire him or approve of it; his life and work are both surrounded by controversy. In this welcome reissue of his classic biographical study, complete with a brand-new Preface, Brian McGuinness traces the early years of this fascinating figure and examines the formative influences which shaped his extraordinary life.
Customer Reviews:
New Edition of Prize-winning Biography.......2005-10-16
Professor McGuinness' Young Ludwig (1988) was the first thoroughly researched and in-depth life history of the philosopher. Over fifteen years passed and the text eventually went out of print. Oxford decided to launch a second edition, with a new preface by McGuinness, enabling the work to be read by a new generation of readers interested in the rich culture and family that contributed to Wittgenstein's thought and the creation of the Tractatus. In fact, the last chapter of the book is devoted entirely to the Tractatus, which to a large extent sheds new light on this often-misunderstood philosophical text.
McGuinness spent many years researching and composing this biography. He travelled throughout Europe, Israel and America, studying countless manuscripts and correspondence, interviewing family and individuals that knew the philosopher, many of whom, unfortunately, have passed on.
This is a detailed analysis of Wittgenstein, painting a rich cultural picture of pre-WW1 Vienna. Wittgenstein's father, Karl, was an extraordinary man in his own right, a capitalist of ingenious talent, creating an empire of extreme wealth and prestige. A creative and forceful personality, similar to his youngest son, along with his wife, was at the centre of the thriving music and art scene in Vienna, where Brahms, Mahler, and Klimt were frequent guests at the house for musical evenings and group discussions on literature, culture and politics. Karl Wittgenstein wrote many economic articles for major publications in Vienna and Germany that continue to be read by historians today.
The family, however, experienced tragedy, with three of Karl's oldest sons committing suicide. Ludwig often considered ending his own life, but experienced a spiritual transformation after WW1, (As many young men who survived experienced after the war) was awarded medals for bravery and ended up a prisoner of war in an Italian camp. It is in this camp that Wittgenstein wrote the finishing touches, from the copious notebooks written during the war, of his only published philosophical treatise, Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus. The biography describes the philosopher's war experiences, his time as a prisoner of war and his eventual return to Vienna, where he gave away his massive inheritance, attempted to publish his book, attended teachers college to instruct elementary school and became a gardener for a Catholic monastery.
Unfortunately, the biography ends in 1921, a year before the first publication of the English translation of the Tractutas. I believe in the "philosophical biography" as it can present the family and cultural influences on the philosopher, revealing better insight into the particular ideas and thought processes of that philosopher.
This is a prize winning biography giving the reader greater insight into a unique and extraordinary human being.
Glad to see this classic reissued.......2005-06-25
It's good to see Brian McGuinness's biography of the first half of Ludwig Wittgenstein's life back in print. There are other worthwhile books on Wittgenstein's life and thought, but none is a substitute for this book.
"Young Ludwig" is the result of years of McGuinness' own research. It draws on his personal discussions and correspondence with members of Wittgenstein's family and friends during which, he tells us in a new preface, he was "reconstructing Wittgenstein's life along with them." This biography shows that he also meticulously tracked down a wide variety of acquaintances and people who had crossed paths with Wittgenstein and Russell. He seems to have ferretted out an amazing variety of documents and other scattered scraps of evidence from unusual places as well as from the usual kinds of sources. The book is densely detailed; even people who know a lot about Wittgenstein from other sources will learn new things about him and his times from this book. (I know this because of the "Really -- I didn't know that!" reactions I often get when mentioning things I've learned from this book to fellow philosophers.)
The book also benefits from McGuinness' role as a philosopher. He has authored many papers on Wittgenstein's philosophy (some recently collected in Approaches to Wittgenstein (Routledge 2002)) and edited anthologies related to it. Young Ludwig exhibits McGuinness' intimate acquaintance with Wittgenstein's intellectual interests and philosophical endeavors during his early years. Along with another Oxford philosopher (David Pears), McGuinness produced a new translation of the Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus. In that related project, his philosophical work was accompanied by substantial historical research: he located, scrutinized, and tried to date and order such manuscripts as could be discovered of Wittgenstein's previous attempts at the work. He dug up and edited and/or translated many works related to Wittgenstein's life and work previously unavailable in English: essays on political economy by Karl Wittgenstein (Ludwig's father), popular scientific essays by Ludwig Boltzmann (whom Ludwig admired and wanted to study physics with), and many, many others. Thus, his work on Wittgenstein scholarship is monumental: writing about Wittgenstein involved establishing a whole collection of sources related to his life and work.
I also happen to like this book a lot. I personally prefer the kind of biography McGuinness has written. You read it slowly, lingering over the groupings of artifacts and remembrances he has brought together and leads you through as a patient guide. You begin to realize how vast the collection is, how much there is to be put together. He does not tell you what to make of everything --- although (as he put it in the preface to the first edition) he does attempt to present Wittgenstein's life "as something capable of being seen as a unity". He pauses at times to address the reader on the significance of a certain detail, on the ambiguities involved in the craft of biography and on more general conundrums involved in making sense of another human being. He tells us not only about his subject, but how he came to know his subject, generously sharing his finds with the reader. It is somehow extremely scholarly and humbly personal at the same time. I like his style because it allows the reader some mental freedom to develop his or her own picture of things from what is known. McGuinness tells us in the new preface that his interest "is not in causes but in effects, in seeing how Wittgenstein (the young Wittgenstein, in this volume) lived out the situation he was in." You will want to have this book for the sheer amount of information it contains (it has an index, too), regardless of your taste in biographical style.
When this book was out of print, I snapped up used copies to loan to students and colleagues. (I would not part with my own.) Now I can tell them what I would tell anyone interested in Wittgenstein's life or early analytic philosophy: we are very fortunate to have this labor of love available to us, and in an affordable edition, too --- how great that now anyone can go get a copy!
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- Not All People Think LW Great
- Biography of Genius!
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Wittgenstein
A.J. Ayer
Manufacturer: Random House
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Binding: Hardcover
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Bertrand Russell
ASIN: 0394543475
Release Date: 1985-07-12 |
Customer Reviews:
Not All People Think LW Great.......2005-06-25
I thought I was alone among those philosophically inclined in not holding Wittgenstein in highest esteem. I'm delighted to find that Ayer (one of the original Vienna Circle members and a progenitor of the logical positivist movement) isn't entirely enthralled with LW either, and for many of the same reasons. Besides being cryptic and disorganized, Wittgenstein is often opaque, ambivalent, and subject to much confusion and misinterpretation.
Ayer in this short work uses the principle of charity in always giving LW the benefit of doubt. When polysemy occurs, which it often does with Wittgenstein, Ayer always chooses the most favorable interpretation. Even given this advantage, it is often the case that LW's arguments, even when understood in the most favorable light, are just simply counter intuitive, or they're illogical. or they make a categorical mistake (to borrow a phrase from Gilbert Ryle).
That's not to say that Ayer is not a little cryptic himself (his writing skills are notoriously poor). Many of his propositions have to be reread in order to understand the context and meaning of his propositions. But this complaint aside, Ayer takes on LW on a number of fronts: Often it's just a matter of the examples LW uses; otherwise it is a frontal attack on private language, the way language works, how the mind functions, the problem with following a rule, the picture theory of language, etc.
Ayer's discourse is civil, recognizing that Wittgenstein, despite all his faults, is enormously important for understanding the linguistic turn that all the humanities took in the 20th century. But the complexity of LW's arguments, which David Stern claims repeatedly are reductio ad absurdum, still go against our basic intuitions. It does, after all, make sense to talk about a private language in several senses (although I confess LW is using it in a special sense). Solipsism, moreover, is not a serious problem, unless one takes LW seriously, which is often hard to do. And the problem of the skeptic was handled well by Hume and doesn't need reinvention in order to succeed again.
Ayer takes Wittengenstein's thought as it evolves: From the "Tractatus" to "Philosophical Investigations," including the Blue and Brown Books, "Philosophical Grammar" "Zettel," and "Philosophical Remarks" in between. I found Ayer's criticisms, which are now more from a pragmatic point of view than his former logico-positivist perspective, clearly on target. No serious student of LW ought to neglect Ayer's important insights. We may all conclude that Wittgenstein, for all his faults, was still instrumental in starting the language game that consumed much of the last century. Yet, his near deification is itself "out of context."
Biography of Genius!.......2001-01-19
For the philosopher or the fan of philosophical gossip, A. J. Ayer (of logical positivism fame) offers a biography of the eccentric philosophical genius Ludwig Wittgenstein. The author begins with a chapter providing a complete biographical sketch of Wittgenstein, and does not spare us any of his eccentricities. The author traces the life of this individual from his early interest in aeronautics and mathematics to his study at Cambridge under Bertrand Russell to the development of his own thought. Ayer explains how Wittgenstein believed himself to have addressed all philosophical questions in his Tractatus (and mentions the debt W. owes to Schopenhauer, and thereby Kant), and then the period in which W. left philosophy and became a gardener, nearly a monk, and a school teacher. Ayer then deals with the later Wittgenstein, his thoughts on psychology, the foundations of mathematics, language games, and religion. Ayer concludes that Wittgenstein is to be ranked only behind Russell as the greatest philosopher of the twentieth century.
Overall this book provides much of interest in the philosophical thought of Wittgenstein, and also gives many anecdotes of his nearly manic disposition and uncanny character. An important biography of a truly great philosopher.
Book Description
An icon of Modernism. The master of enigmatic logic. The modern Socrates.
Customer Reviews:
A good place to begin..........2005-08-20
Wittgenstein the man, and Wittgenstein's philosophy has been the focus of modern thinker's for two generations. His enigmatic logic and original thoughts on the nature of language, for example, has influenced many disciplines across the spectrum, including anthropology, cultural studies and literary theory. Wittgenstein has also been called the quintessential icon of Modernism, the most original thinker since Plato, yet has been the most misunderstood philosopher in the history of ideas. If you want to understand his philosophy, where do you start? This study guide, written clearly by John Heaton, in my opinion, is a good place to begin.
Introducing Wittgenstein combines biographical information about the man and his thoughts. The only book to be published by Wittgenstein in his lifetime was his Tractatus Logico- Philosophicus, a mere seventy-page treatise that confounded and inspired the leading minds of his generation. The book begins with the line, "The world is all that is the case." ending with the line, "What we cannot speak about we must pass over in silence." As Heaton proposes, "...the last sentence assumes that only factual propositions are meaningful, so the world consists only in facts...there is a distinction between what can be -said- and what can only be -shown- is being developed organically" (P. 30)
The Tractatus was not intended to be an easy study. In fact in the Preface, Wittgenstein wrote, "Its purpose would be achieved if it gave pleasure to one person who read and understood it."
Introducing Wittgenstein moves on from the Tractatus touching on the changes of the man's thought about the nature of language, logic, mathematics, religion, art and culture, up to the end of his life.
Heaton makes a brave and successful attempt to illustrate the many at times complex ideas in Wittgenstein's later work, Philosophical Investigations, which most academics today believe is the more developed and refined expressions of his philosophy.
This book does a fine job of explaining Wittgenstein's thought in a clear and accessible manner and tone; although superficial, touching only the surfaces, as it is an introduction, it is an appropriate place to begin.
Introducing Wittgenstein.......2004-07-04
This is the second book I've read in the "Introducing..." series and the first I've had a positive experience with. Employing graphics and text (with a little more emphasis on the graphics) INTRODUCING WITTGENSTEIN provided me with enough information to decide whether I wanted to proceed from introduction to a deeper acquaintance.
The first half of the book is a short biography of Wittgenstein, the second a truncated and abbreviated synopsis of his philosophy. The looser graphic format allows the authors to avoid some of the limitations of the more traditional, text-only biography. They aren't tied to a linear narrative. Most important, perhaps, is that the graphics make an intimidating subject seem more approachable.
The second half of the book deals with Wittgenstein's philosophy. Although it doesn't explain Wittgenstein's philosophy (I'm afraid you'd have to go to the source material for that) it does outline Wittgenstein's area of interest - thought and language, non-existential truths, doubt and certainty.
After reading this, do I know what Wittgenstein was talking about? Yes and no. I don't understand his philosophy, but that wasn't quite the point of this book. I have a rough idea of his work, and the authors include an annotated bibliography if I want to continue on. Introduction successful.
Useful introduction that will help me find more if I need it.......2001-10-01
I have no interest in spending a month figuring out exactly what Wittgenstein *really* meant and wrote, but I do need to be able to read a text that mentions "dasein" or "Wittgenstein's view of technology", for instance, without stumbling. This introduction was amusingly written and gave me enough of an outline that next time I come across Wittgensteinian references I'll know where to look for more detail if I need it.
In general I quite like the comic style - so refreshing compared to many academic texts which seem to relish being as abtrusely and boringly presented as possible - sometimes I thought the illustrator was thinning out the paint a bit much. The same illustrations are mixed and remixed till I was thoroughly sick of that same old drawing of Wittgenstein's face.
too brief and not concise.......1999-08-24
most of the texts from this series are reliable introductions to the thinkers they discuss. this series is more in depth than the "beginners" series of comic introductions. this text falls short in that wittgenstein secondary texts are usually thicker than other texts in the series for a reason. wittgenstein is a complex thinker in which it takes time to explain no less outline. this text to too brief and too generalized to be effective and winds up confusing more than, in wittgensteinian terms, elucidating
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Wittgenstein and His Times
Manufacturer: University of Chicago Press
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Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 0226558819 |
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Wittgenstein: Biography and Philosophy
Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press
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Binding: Paperback
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Ludwig Wittgenstein: The Duty of Genius
ASIN: 0521008689 |
Book Description
This collection of new essays deals with the relationship between Wittgenstein's life and his philosophy. The first two essays reflect on general problems inherent in philosophical biography itself. The essays that follow draw on recently published letters as well as recently published diaries from the 1930s to explore Wittgenstein's background as an engineer and its relation to the Tractatus, the impact of his schizoid personality on his approach to philosophy, his role as a diarist, letter-writer and polemicist, and finally the complex issue of Wittgenstein as a Jew.
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