Summary
Summary Kenny - Wittgenstein notes
- Module
- Wittgenstein
- Institution
- Oxford University (OX)
Notes on Kenny's writings on Wittgenstein
[Show more]
Content preview
Anthony Kenny - WittgensteinChapter Seven: Anticipation, Intentionality and Verification
● The later Wittgenstein’s suggestion of diversity of language is often taken to contrast
‘meaning as use’ with the picture theory of the proposition, as in early Witt
○ Wittgenstein does concern himself with different types of sentences from
the Tractatus, but ultimately his considerations support the picture theory of meaning
● We can divide uses of language into the indicative and the imperative moods
○ indicative = language to report facts
■ indicative sentences (propositions) can be analysed
truth-conditonally
○ imperative = language to guide behaviour
■ imperative propositions aren’t obviously true or false
e.g. ‘Pass the salt’
○ it seems like the pictorial element of imperative and indicative statements
can be the same e.g. in ‘the door is open’ and ‘open the door’
■ both contain a state of affairs - one describes the state of
affairs as existent, the other prescribes the state of affairs
■ the connection between language and reality in the two
differs:
● where the indicative statement is false,
the statement is faulted because it doesn’t accord with the actual state of
affairs
● when the imperative statement is ‘false’,
the state of affairs is unsatisfactory because it doesn’t accord with the
statement
■ on this view, the picture theory might refer to what is in
common between the indicative and imperative statements - namely, the picture
(e.g. of the open door), without its attached mood.
● hence it could be called a theory of the
proposition-radical rather than of the proposition
● Wittgenstein was also interested in the optative mood - expression of desire or will in a
wish
○ in the Tractatus, an indicative sentence corresponds to a thought which:
■ stands in an internal relation to a proposition and a state
of affairs
■ contains objects which would correspond to elements of
a fully analysed proposition
■ so, some internal relation between thought, language and
reality is what guarantees the truth-ability of optative propositions?
○ expectation might similarly correspond to a future-tense indicative
statement
■ hence it would stand in an internal relation to the
sentence which expresses it and the state of affairs that fulfils it
● this means that in describing ‘expecting
p’ we must use ‘p’
The benefits of buying summaries with Stuvia:
Guaranteed quality through customer reviews
Stuvia customers have reviewed more than 700,000 summaries. This how you know that you are buying the best documents.
Quick and easy check-out
You can quickly pay through credit card for the summaries. There is no membership needed.
Focus on what matters
Your fellow students write the study notes themselves, which is why the documents are always reliable and up-to-date. This ensures you quickly get to the core!
Frequently asked questions
What do I get when I buy this document?
You get a PDF, available immediately after your purchase. The purchased document is accessible anytime, anywhere and indefinitely through your profile.
Satisfaction guarantee: how does it work?
Our satisfaction guarantee ensures that you always find a study document that suits you well. You fill out a form, and our customer service team takes care of the rest.
Who am I buying these notes from?
Stuvia is a marketplace, so you are not buying this document from us, but from seller patrickfleming. Stuvia facilitates payment to the seller.
Will I be stuck with a subscription?
No, you only buy these notes for £3.49. You're not tied to anything after your purchase.
Can Stuvia be trusted?
4.6 stars on Google & Trustpilot (+1000 reviews)
78998 documents were sold in the last 30 days
Founded in 2010, the go-to place to buy revision notes and other study material for 14 years now