[lit-ideas] Re: Wittgenstein the positivist
- From: Donal McEvoy <donalmcevoyuk@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Mon, 5 Apr 2004 17:28:52 +0100 (BST)
Popper in 'Objective Knowledge' p.321, "Comments on Tarski's Theory of
Truth",
"In vol.2 of the same _Enclyclopedia*_ we are told that it is implicit in the
later writings of Wittgenstein 'that a concept is vacuous if there is no
criterion for its application'.
"The term 'positivism' has many meanings, but this (Wittgensteinian) thesis
that 'a concept is vacuous if there is no criterion for its application'
seems to me to express the very heart of positivistic tendencies. (The idea
is very close to Hume). If this interpretation of positivism is accepted,
then positivism is refuted by the modern development of logic, and especially
by Tarski's theory of truth, which contains the _theorem_:for sufficiently
rich languages, there can be no general criterion of truth."
* before some wag inquires whether this was the Encyclopedia Brittannica For
Children, it was the The Encyclopedia Of Philosophy
Not only are these comments of some interest given Robert Paul's claim that W
was no positivist, they may be seen against a background where it is unclear
W ever understood Tarski's and Godel's work properly (see eg. Monk, p.295).
If W did not, these figures might be added to figures like Darwin whose work
was of great importance for Popper's thought but whose work Wittgenstein
seems to have had understood little of. Consider W's thesis at TLP 4.1122
whose truth perhaps discussion in a separate thread, and other adverse
remarks re Darwin's theory.
Donal
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