Wittgenstein: An Introduction

By Joachim Schulte

Book Overview

Joachim Schulte's introduction provides a distinctive and masterful account of the full range of Wittgenstein's thought. It is concise but not compressed, substantive but not overloaded with developmental or technical detail, informed by the latest scholarship but not pedantic. Beginners will find it accessible and seasoned students of Wittgenstein will appreciate it for the illuminating overview it provides.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 079141082X
• ISBN13: 9780791410820
• Release Date: September 1992
• Publisher: State University of New York Press
• Length: 200 Pages
• Weight: 1.01 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 6.4" x 9.1"

Customer Reviews

Commendable

All in all, a clear and concise introduction to the two main phases and connecting strands of Wittgenstein's work. The part dealing with the Investigations, however, is superior to that focusing on the Tractatus. Too much of the latter remains underdeveloped, precluding the kind of contours that would allow the reader to appreciate the overall power of this essentialist theory of language. Moreover, Schulte appears to shy away from pointing out the general contrast between the two stages of Witt's career. Though the extent of the contrast is debated by scholars, the fact remains an important one for understanding how Witt came to replace the methods and conclusions of the Tractatus with the very different ones of the Investigations. This transition continues to hold important lessons for those philosophizing in the traditional manner, and I wish Schulte had emphasized the contrast more for the reader's benefit. Nonetheless the section on criteria is a little gem. Many of the more difficult meditations on philosophy of mind, including private languages, are explicated in clear and comprehendible terms. In these last sections, Schulte arrives at an effective level of exposition, neither too shallow nor too detailed, as befits a proper introduction. Recommended for those interested in concepts of mind.