Routledge Philosophy GuideBook to Wittgenstein and On Certainty [Paperback]

Ludwig Wittgenstein is arguably the most important philosopher of the twentieth century. In On Certaintyhe discusses central issues in epistemology, including the nature of knowledge and scepticism. The Routledge Philosophy Guidebook to Wittgenstein and On Certaintyintroduces and assesses:

• Wittgenstein's career and the background to his later philosophy
• the central ideas and text of On Certainty, including its responses to G.E. Moore and discussion of fundamental issues in the theory of knowledge
• Wittgenstein's continuing importance in contemporary philosophy.

This GuideBookis essential reading for all students of Wittgenstein, and for those studying epistemology and philosophy of language. On Certainty, Wittgenstein's final work, addresses a category of world-picture propositions discovered by G.E. Moore. These challenge Wittgenstein's enduring commitment to a well-defined category of empirical propositions, and help to generate a critique of scepticism. Developing Wittgenstein's view that scepticism is self-undermining, the Guidebook offers a combative yet therapeutic interpretation that locates On Certaintybetween the standpoints of Kant and Hume.

1. Wittgenstein's philosophical development  2. Enduring Wittgensteinian motifs in On Certainty  3. Reading On Certainty: text and work  4. Synopsis of On Certainty  5. Moorean common sense  6. Wittgenstein's account of Moorean propositions  7. Wittgenstein's idea of a world-picture   8. On Certaintyin the context of 20th century epistemology  9. Moore's proof of an external world   10. Responses to scepticism: arguments against moore  11. Responses to sceplC