[Wittrs] Re: Recommendations
- From: Sean Wilson <whoooo26505@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: Wittrs@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Thu, 20 Aug 2009 09:14:13 -0700 (PDT)
Hi Mike:
I don't know where to begin, other than to say this: don't pick up any of
Wittgenstein's work without having some sort of aide. The problem gets worse
because expositors are frequently not as remarkable in their insight and can
give you a slanted account of Wittgenstein. (Ludwig always hated the fact that
people only half-understood his ideas). The best advice I can give is to do the
following:
1. READ BIOGRAPHY:
Ray Monk's, the Duty of Genius is the best. I also like Normal Malcolm's little
testimonial (it presents a lot of his personality and such, which helps you
understand him as well). Wittgenstein's Poker is also an interesting little
book, but I would only recommend it for reading on the side. The first two
suggestions are much more important.
You will never truly understand Wittgenstein until you understand his life and
the problems he encountered (and attempted to solve).
2. LITTLE SUMMARIES
These books tend to be hazardous because Wittgenstein's philosophy was never a
3-point bulletin. But I suppose if I were going to pick one -- and I have
picked many -- I would take Ray Monk's, "How to Read Wittgenstein." There is
also Avrum Stroll's book, "Wittgenstein," which is so-so. And Edward
Kantarian's, "Ludwig Wittgenstein." The general problem with books of this kind
is that you get a sort of "hearsay account" of what it means to understand
Wittgensteinian along with the authors opinions. It's almost like
learning about war through testimony. I guess if one started with a blank
slate, this would be fine. But at some point these things are going to have to
be given the status of "preface" to the more useful stuff, if they are to be
relied upon at all.
3. DIRECT WORK
As for Wittgenstein's work, A beginner should pick up anything but the
Tractatus, so long as it isn't also esoteric (e.g., Wittgenstein on color, or
religion, or aesthetics). That would mean, most likely, Philosophical
Investigations, On Certainty, or the new summary work by his executors, "Major
Works" (now available at Barnes and Noble). Really, Major Works is not a bad
place to start. For me personally, I also like books like "Zettel" and "Culture
and Value" and the esoteric subjects, but that is just me.
4. ACADEMIC TREATMENTS
I'm not sure what to recommend here. These come in two forms: lengthy
treatments about his philosophy and concentrated treatment of something
specific (religion, the Tractatus, etc.). I wonder what other list members
would recommend for lengthy academic treatments of him? I just purchased about
16 books about Wittgenstein on my trips to New York and Pittsburgh (used book
stores), but they are not here in my office. To my surprise, I had found some
interesting old books that looked pretty decent. But I suppose the best basic
source here would be the new edition of the "Wittgenstein Reader" by Anthony
Kenny. Make sure you get the new edition.
5. CONCLUSION
So let's break this down. What should a brand new Wittgenstein-curious person
have to learn him? I'd say go for this:
1. Ray Monk's, the Duty of Genius (paperback online would be cheap)
2. Major Works (at Barnes and Noble)
3. Wittgenstein Reader (Anthony Kenny)
Recommended:
4. Malcolm's little book
5. Monk's, "How to Read Wittgenstein"
6. Philosophical Investigations
(By the way, 1, 2 & 4 are probably going to be my text books in a class that I
am prepping).
Dr. Sean Wilson, Esq.
Assistant Professor
Wright State University
Redesigned Website: http://seanwilson.org
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New Discussion Group: http://seanwilson.org/wittgenstein.discussion.html
________________________________
From: "mgreen.historian@xxxxxxxxx" <mgreen.historian@xxxxxxxxx>
To: Wittrs@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Thursday, August 20, 2009 11:02:41 AM
Subject: [Wittrs] Recommendations
I would like to ask if members can recommend works that help explain
Wittgenstein' s ideas.
.
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