Clear and Queer Thinking: Wittgenstein's Development and His Relevance to Modern Thought [Paperback]

Laurence Goldstein (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0847695468 | ISBN-13: 978-0847695461 | Publication Date: April 1999

Wittgenstein is generally regarded as a difficult philosopher. People reading him sometimes see the glint of a precious stone and are aware that there are diamonds to be found if only they knew how to look. His prose can seem obscure, yet Wittgenstein himself enjoins us to stay silent where we cannot speak clearly, and he criticizes other philosophers for finding OqueerO what would seem wholly unmysterious if only they would curb their compulsion to be misled. A main source of failure to understand, in WittgensteinOs view, is that we do not command a clear view of the use of our words. Laurence Goldstein gives a straightforward and lively account of some of the central themes of WittgensteinOs writings on meaning, mind, and mathematics. He does this both by drawing on WittgensteinOs work to show how his thinking developed over time and by helping the reader gain some impression of what a strange character Wittgenstein was_for how he was is intimately related to how and what he wrote. Clear and Queer Thinking also brings WittgensteinOs ideas to bear on a wide range of topics in linguistics, cognitive science, psychology, and neuroscience and will therefore be of interest not only to philosophers but also to linguists, psychologists, and those working in the brain sciences.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Goldstein's knowledge of the body of Wittgenstein's work is impressive and he does an excellent job of explaining transitions in Wittgnestein's thought and comparing not only Philosophical Investigations to the Tractatus but discussing many of Wittgenstein's other works, notebooks, lectures, and personal letters as well. On the side of biographical information, Goldstein does a good job of pulling together relevalnt aspects of most of the work that has been done in the area. The combination of philosophy and biographical work make the text both readable and interesting. (Philosophy In Review )

About the Author

Laurence Goldstein is professor of mind and language at the University of Hong Kong. He is author of The PhilosopherOs Habitat (1990) and co-author of How Computers Work (1992) and Across the Bridge to Economic and Public Affairs (1994), and editor of Precedent in Law (1987).

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers (April 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0847695468
• ISBN-13: 978-0847695461
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,418,587 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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