Wittgenstein in the 1930s: Between the Tractatus and the Investigations

Description

Wittgenstein's 'middle period' is often seen as a transitional phase connecting his better-known early and later philosophies. The fifteen essays in this volume focus both on the distinctive character of his teaching and writing in the 1930s, and on its pivotal importance for an understanding of his philosophy as a whole. They offer wide-ranging perspectives on the central issue of how best to identify changes and continuities in his philosophy during those years, as well as on particular topics in the philosophy of mind, religion, ethics, aesthetics, and the philosophy of mathematics. The volume will be valuable for all who are interested in this formative period of Wittgenstein's development.

David G. Stern is Professor of Philosophy and a Collegiate Fellow in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at the University of Iowa. He is the author of Wittgenstein's 'Philosophical Investigations': An Introduction (Cambridge, 2004) and Wittgenstein on Mind and Language (1995), as well as more than fifty journal articles and book chapters. He is also a co-editor of The Cambridge Companion to Wittgenstein (Cambridge, 2nd edition, 2018), Wittgenstein: Lectures, Cambridge 1930-1933: From the Notes of G. E. Moore (Cambridge, 2016) and Wittgenstein Reads Weininger (2004).

'Overall, the collection is excellent - it includes interesting, well-written essays by notable Wittgenstein scholars ... Stern's introduction is especially helpful in situating the book in the existing literature and debates, and may be of broad interest.' M. J. Moore, Choice 'For Wittgenstein, throughout his life, philosophy was seen as 'not a doctrine but an activity' ... This philosophical unrest is exposed, analyzed and discussed throughout the book. ... The present volume, then, does a great service for Wittgenstein scholars and followers - not only because of the depth and quality of the essays comprising it but also in reminding us what philosophy 'as an activity' may mean.' Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews 'Overall, the collection is excellent - it includes interesting, well-written essays by notable Wittgenstein scholars ... Stern's introduction is especially helpful in situating the book in the existing literature and debates, and may be of broad interest. Recommended.' Choice