Customer Reviews

Prototractatus

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In 1965, Wright, an executor of Wittgenstein's estate, found an unknown manuscript in Vienna. He called it "Prototractatus" and reproduced here facsimile. To me, it looked almost exactly same as Tractatus. If you are interested in a difference between "2+2=4" and "2x2=4" in Tractatus 6.241, this would be a great book. I would be more interested in the Wittgenstein's aborted project during 30's, sort of "post-Tractatus", that was supposed to contain Wittgenstein II's criticism against his own Tractatus by Wittgenstein I.
However, this Prototractatus has a very interesting introduction part for first thirty pages by von Wright. Historical introduction offers a detailed account of Wittgenstein and Russell's effort to publish Tractatus. One would be astounded to find how difficult to find a publisher for this groundbreaking book. In fact, they once gave it up.
Of overwhelming interest to me was Wittgenstein's letter to the editor Ludwig Ficker. He explained the reason why Tractatus was important to humanity, that clarify misunderstanding of this book by many people including today's readers : "Dear Ficker.....You see, I am quite sure that you won't get all that much out of reading it. Because you won't understand it; it's subject-matter will seem quite alien to you. But it isn't really alien to you, because the book's point is an ethical one. I once meant to include in the preface a sentence which is not in fact there now but which I will write out for you here....My work consists of two parts: the one presented here plus all that I have not written. And it is precisely this second part that is the important one."