Ludwig Wittgenstein
(Copyright © 2005 Piero Scaruffi | Legal restrictions - Termini d'uso )

Philosophy of Nature
Philosophy of Language
Logic
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Synopsis:
  • Philosophical problems are false problems: they are due to linguistic misunderstandings
  • The structure of language reflects the structure of the world
  • The world is made of complex facts that can be broken down into simpler facts
  • Language is made of complex propositions that can be broken down into simpler propositions
  • Language is like a map of the world: the connections between the elements of language reflects the connections between the elements of the world
  • The structure of language reflects the structure of the world
  • The totality of true propositions (the totality of science) provide a representation of the world that is adequate and complete
  • Understanding a proposition is knowing "what is the case if it is true" (to which reality it corresponds)
  • The meaning of the world cannot be understood from inside the world
  • Ethics is impossible because we are inside the world that ethics struggles to understand
  • Metaphysics is a fictitious discipline due to a wrong use of language: it is neither true nor false, it cannot be justified (just like religion and magic)
  • Mathematical entities are pure constructions of the mind: the mathematician is an inventor
  • Mathematics cannot be grounded in the world: it is a game played by mathematicians
  • Language has a function
  • Words are tools
  • Assertions, commands, questions, etc
  • Language is a game between people
  • The meaning of a proposition can only be understood in its context
  • Truth is a multi-faceted concept: different statements can be all true without being true in the same way ("alethic pluralism")
  • The meaning of a word is due to the consensus of a society
  • To understand a word is to understand a language
  • To understand a language is to master the linguistic skills
  • Definitions are ambigous or implausible
  • Categories are based on "family resemblance", not on features
  • There is no ghost in the machine, no mind that understands, just "understanding"

(Copyright © 2005 Piero Scaruffi | Legal restrictions - Termini d'uso )