Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889 – 1951) was one of the most important philosophers of the 20th century.&nbsp;Wittgenstein made a major contribution to conversations on language &amp; using language he advanced logic, but also ethics, the way that we should live in the world.&nbsp;Wittgenstein was a difficult character. Those who knew him assumed he was either a madman or a genius. He was known for working himself up into fits of frustration, pacing about the room decrying his own stupidity, and lambasting philosophers for their habit of tying themselves in semantic knots.

Ludwig Wittgenstein

The contemporary debate between atheists and believers is premised on the idea that the word ‘God’ either represents something in the real world, or it does not.Wittgensteinian approach to the debate begins by pointing out ‘God’ is a word that has different meanings in the context of different communities:<ul><li>‘God’ used to articulate different facets of experience (‘It’s in God’s hands now’ or ‘When the sun rose, I felt the presence of God’).</li><li>‘God’ as a move in a social game, that expresses fidelity to a way of life</li></ul>

Wittgenstein’s God

In his first book postulated the ‘picture theory’ of language: reality (‘the world’) as a vast collection of facts that we can picture in language, assuming we poses the language.&nbsp;He then changed his mind, from seeing language as a fixed structure imposed upon the world to seeing it as a fluid structure that is intimately bound up with our everyday practices. It ain’t what you say, it’s the way that you say it, and the context in which you say it. Words are how you use them.

Wittgenstein’s Theories on Language

"If a lion could talk, we should not be able to understand him", Wittgenstein argued.Because the language games of lions are too different from our own to permit understanding.&nbsp;

"If the lion could talk ..."

Wittgenstein’s teachings on language has practical value:<ul><li>Why waste time arguing over issues that will never be resolved when the whole thing could be deflated with a simple question: ‘Are we even talking about the same thing?’</li><li>Think about the audience when you write anything &amp; craft your words accordingly.</li></ul>

You can not enter a world you don't have the words for

If people never did anything stupid, nothing intelligent would ever get done.

I don’t know why we are here, but I’m pretty sure that it is not in order to enjoy ourselves

LUDWIG WITTGENSTEIN

Similar ideas to Ludwig Wittgenstein

Ask why.

Uncertainty

SARA AL MADANI