Ideas from 'Lectures 1930-32 (student notes)' by Ludwig Wittgenstein [1931], by Theme Structure
[found in 'Lectures in Cambridge 1930-32' by Wittgenstein,Ludwig (ed/tr Lee,Desmond) [Blackwell 1980,0-631-13167-1]].
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1. Philosophy / C. History of Philosophy / 1. History of Philosophy
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18730
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The history of philosophy only matters if the subject is a choice between rival theories
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1. Philosophy / D. Nature of Philosophy / 5. Aims of Philosophy / d. Philosophy as puzzles
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18704
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Philosophy tries to be rid of certain intellectual puzzles, irrelevant to daily life
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1. Philosophy / D. Nature of Philosophy / 7. Despair over Philosophy
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18710
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Philosophers express puzzlement, but don't clearly state the puzzle
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1. Philosophy / F. Analytic Philosophy / 5. Linguistic Analysis
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18732
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We don't need a theory of truth, because we use the word perfectly well
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1. Philosophy / F. Analytic Philosophy / 7. Limitations of Analysis
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18714
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We already know what we want to know, and analysis gives us no new facts
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2. Reason / F. Fallacies / 9. Category Mistake / a. Category mistakes
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18706
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Words of the same kind can be substituted in a proposition without producing nonsense
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2. Reason / F. Fallacies / 9. Category Mistake / b. Category mistake as syntactic
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18719
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Grammar says that saying 'sound is red' is not false, but nonsense
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18735
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Talking nonsense is not following the rules
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3. Truth / A. Truth Problems / 2. Defining Truth
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18731
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There is no theory of truth, because it isn't a concept
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3. Truth / C. Correspondence Truth / 1. Correspondence Truth
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18707
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All thought has the logical form of reality
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5. Theory of Logic / A. Overview of Logic / 1. Overview of Logic
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18724
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In logic nothing is hidden
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5. Theory of Logic / C. Ontology of Logic / 4. Logic by Convention
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18709
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Laws of logic are like laws of chess - if you change them, it's just a different game
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5. Theory of Logic / D. Assumptions for Logic / 3. Contradiction
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18736
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Contradiction is between two rules, not between rule and reality
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5. Theory of Logic / E. Structures of Logic / 2. Logical Connectives / c. not
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18723
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We may correctly use 'not' without making the rule explicit
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5. Theory of Logic / E. Structures of Logic / 2. Logical Connectives / d. and
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18718
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Saying 'and' has meaning is just saying it works in a sentence
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5. Theory of Logic / F. Referring in Logic / 1. Naming / a. Names
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18727
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A person's name doesn't mean their body; bodies don't sit down, and their existence can be denied
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6. Mathematics / A. Nature of Mathematics / 3. Nature of Numbers / g. Real numbers
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18738
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We don't get 'nearer' to something by adding decimals to 1.1412... (root-2)
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6. Mathematics / A. Nature of Mathematics / 5. The Infinite / a. The Infinite
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18708
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Infinity is not a number, so doesn't say how many; it is the property of a law
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7. Existence / D. Theories of Reality / 8. Facts / b. Types of fact
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18737
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There are no positive or negative facts; these are just the forms of propositions
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8. Modes of Existence / D. Universals / 5. Universals as Concepts
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18715
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Using 'green' is a commitment to future usage of 'green'
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10. Modality / C. Sources of Modality / 3. Necessity by Convention
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18726
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For each necessity in the world there is an arbitrary rule of language
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11. Knowledge Aims / A. Knowledge / 2. Understanding
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18712
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Understanding is translation, into action or into other symbols
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12. Knowledge Sources / B. Perception / 4. Sense Data / a. Sense-data theory
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18280
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We live in sense-data, but talk about physical objects
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12. Knowledge Sources / B. Perception / 4. Sense Data / d. Sense-data problems
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18729
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Part of what we mean by stating the facts is the way we tend to experience them
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12. Knowledge Sources / E. Direct Knowledge / 4. Memory
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18734
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If you remember wrongly, then there must be some other criterion than your remembering
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14. Science / D. Explanation / 1. Explanation / b. Aims of explanation
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18721
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Explanation and understanding are the same
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18720
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Explanation gives understanding by revealing the full multiplicity of the thing
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14. Science / D. Explanation / 2. Types of Explanation / i. Explanations by mechanism
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18716
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A machine strikes us as being a rule of movement
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14. Science / D. Explanation / 3. Best Explanation / a. Best explanation
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18713
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If an explanation is good, the symbol is used properly in the future
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18. Thought / A. Modes of Thought / 1. Thought
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18717
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Thought is an activity which we perform by the expression of it
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19. Language / A. Nature of Meaning / 4. Meaning as Truth-Conditions
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18725
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A proposition draws a line around the facts which agree with it
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19. Language / A. Nature of Meaning / 5. Meaning as Verification
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18728
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The meaning of a proposition is the mode of its verification
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19. Language / A. Nature of Meaning / 7. Meaning Holism / a. Sentence meaning
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18705
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Words function only in propositions, like levers in a machine
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19. Language / D. Propositions / 1. Propositions
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18711
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A proposition is any expression which can be significantly negated
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26. Natural Theory / D. Laws of Nature / 11. Against Laws of Nature
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18733
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Laws of nature are an aspect of the phenomena, and are just our mode of description
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