The Third Wittgenstein

This anthology establishes the existence of a distinct and important post-Investigations Wittgenstein, uncovering the overlooked treasures of the final corpus and crystallizing key perceptions of what his last thought was achieving. Speaking of a ‘third Wittgenstein’, this book seeks to correct the traditional bipartite conception of Wittgenstein’s thought into his Tractatus and Philosophical Investigations by focusing on his neglected last masterpiece, On Certainty, and works contemporaneous with it: Remarks on Colour, Last Writings in the Philosophy of Psychology, and Remarks on the Philosophy of Psychology. Leading international Wittgenstein scholars reveal why On Certainty should be recognized as one of Wittgenstein’s three great works.

This sustained examination shows that the third Wittgenstein breaks new ground with insights unprecedented in both his own work and philosophy more broadly, giving us keys to the solution and dissolution of problems that have plagued philosophy since Descartes, such as philosophical scepticism and the mind–body problem. Wittgenstein’s ultimate and revised positions with regard to epistemology, foundationalism, ‘grammar’, naturalism, the psychology of language, and psychological indeterminacy are clearly delineated. This book also provides new and illuminating accounts of difficult concepts, such as patterns of life, experiencing meaning, meaning blindness, lying and pretence.