Ludwig Wittgenstein: The 20th Century's Greatest Philosopher
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- Опубліковано 25 вер 2024
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Author - D Kelly
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YES! Please do more philosophers Simon! Jung, Kant, Heidegger, Thomas Paine, etc. Definitely an unexplored subtopic on this channel.
He's done Nietzsche. Check it out, pretty decent
Paine's not a real proper philosopher, but he's a great thinker.
Next philosopher on this channel needs to be Alfred North Whitehead.
yessss agreed
@@stevemiller4201 Totally forgot about that one, def need to rewatch it. I edited the original comment to better reflect the request
Adorno!
I stumbled accross his grave, literally, its in a small cemetary in cambridge set flat in the ground, a nondiscript grey stone. i had no idea he was buried there so it was quite a surprise. someone had put a yellow rose on the stone.
the grave yard is lovely - definitely worth checking out if in Cambridge
Wow, he was a successful philosopher if you didn't find him just thrown roughly into an open trench and left for the buzzards. But this guy is ballin, own tombstone and everything
Dream of mine to visit. I'm from Canada.
I went there today!!!
Thank you so much for doing a bio on my favourite philosopher of all time. One important omission : when Wittgenstein came back to teaching philosophy in the 1930s he completely renounced his former philosophical views based the Tractacus to adopt an approach of dissolving philosophical problems by focusing on the use of language in everyday life. 'Philosophy is language going on holiday' as he famously said.
That's why we always make a distinction between 'the former' and 'the later' Wittgenstein.
Great job.
The picture of Wittgenstein as a young child at 4:07 with that deeply worried, concerned look on his face. So heartbreaking.
I was disappointed that you didn't mention that his standing today in philosophy is really due to those postumously published works, The Philosophical Investigations. It was there he said his first book was complete rubbish and set sight on a new foundation based on the understanding of thought as language games.
Language is the result of the minds desire to express thoughts. Language as a byproduct introduces some minimal influence on thought, but it's complete BS that thought is derived from language, or as some people suggest, if you don't know the word, then you can't have that thought... as if an increased vocabulary is equivalent to or required for profound thought. No, the brain is already analyzing from pre-birth, and language is learned to express what the brain wishes to communicate. Without words, the brain has ideas it's trying to express... language in fact limits the full impact of the brains message.
Ranger4564 exactly
yes
@@Ranger4564 It seems that every kind of language is trying to communicate/express the pictures that are being created in your brain. In other ''pictures'' (words) , an Image can be the reason for the brain to produce thoughts and therefore language is the tool and communication the result.
@@HENRYIII003 That’s a perfect way to put it actually. I think it is precisely their madness that is the alchemical source of their genius. It has that transformative quality for the reader when you do pick up, even intuitively, on that little kernel of truth amidst the heaping piles of crap (I love that btw)
In Ireland, if one visits the Botanical Garden (in Dublin), one can find the steps where he stayed and thought about his philosophy. There's a plaque marking his spot. He'd often visit that place and write.
Wittgenstein and his cousin Hayek have had a great impact on my life so far. Thank you for covering one of the most interesting philosophers of all time.
yikes Wittgenstein's cousin was Hayek?
I hate Hayek but he’s a bit more intelligent then the other Austrian school folks
You deny the action axiom?@@Rednines
"Philosophy?!, completed it mate!" L. Wittgenstein
"We were discussing Wittgenstein over a game of backgammon."
Not sitting in Barney's car eating packets of mustard?
How kinky
For the record, "20th Century's Greatest Philosopher" is not clickbait. Several polls have been conducted asking various people in the field who was the most influential philosopher of the last century, with Wittgenstein almost categorically winning. Simply google "20th century most influential philosophers" and you will find several sources which confer this sentiment.
As for the video, I wish you would have taken time to address his posthumous Philosophical Investigations and Wittgenstein's later rejection of his previous works and ideas. His influence primarily lies in this revelatory work which helped push analytic philosophy past its misguided use of positivism and even influenced many subsequent continental philosophers. Many credit his work for causing the contemporary split between analytic and continental philosophy, a defining aspect of the field in the late 20th and early 21st century.
Well said.
Continental philosophy is trash
@ Chris Allen. This might just be a severe case of the Emperor's new clothing.
That's one hell of an assertion in the title.
It is called marketing with some and clickbait with others.
Not a controversial one, though. Many great contemporary philosophers would concur.
@@PhillipCummingsUSA Not called marketing or clickbait. It's a fact that most consider Wittgenstein to be the greatest of the 20th century. Do your research before making glib accusations, mate.
@@thedude4672 Philosphers agreeing on things is highly suspect!
'The award for Children's Animation goes to.....'
What we cannot speak about we must pass over in silence.
And that's why Wittgenstein is, ultimately, a mystic.
@@thedude4672 very much!
@@thedude4672 And, we're told, a beery swine who was just as sloshed as Schlegel.
Whereof one can not speak thereof one must be silent
unless you have a flute or something
Love Wittgenstein. Got to study with world renowned Wittgenstein scholars in grad school.
Now do Alfred North Whitehead.
Wow you are an exceptional talker, really clearly out but I didn’t really get much of a better understanding of his thinking and writings but the bio was fantastic.
Hitting all my favs lately! Please do Heidegger!!!
Thank you for crash presenting Wittgenstien in such a lively manner, a pleasant way to absorb much information in a short time and with great focus. Very well done!
You should have focused more on his philosophical works than his life. This video seemed half-cooked.
I find the focus on the life, primarily, of Wittgenstein appropriate for a video on a channel named 'Biographics'.
However I do agree with you to an extent, in thinking that 'The 20th century's greatest philosopher' is quite a bold claim, one that should be backed up with a reasonable argument as to why that is the case, through a more in-depth analysis of his philosophical works.
That said, it is still interesting to see the man behind the ideas, what his family situation was, how life treated him etc. All would inform how he approached philosophy..
Have waited for this video for a long time.. Well done Simon. I can agree with you that his philosophy is hard to understand. Can you do Franz Fanon the philosopher/psychoanalysist/revolutionary
watching from nairobi kenya ,your stuff is amazing
I’m glad you did Wittgenstein. He’s one of my favorites.
Can you please do Mustafa Kemal Atatürk? More people need to know about him. Thanks.
He haven't done it yet sadly!
Great research! Thank you Simon !
For anyone really interested in Wittgenstein's life, read Ray Monk's bio. It's really good.
It is.
Agreed. It's a wonderful portrait of a brilliant but tortured mind.
“Every explanation is after all an hypothesis” Ludwig Wittgenstein
I think you’re a great narrator and I love all the channels
You should really make a video about _Emil Cioran:_ another great 20th century philosopher.
Recommended reading: "Logicomix: An Epic Search For Truth" by Apostolos Doxiadis and Christos H. Papadimitrou (Bloomsbury, 2009) in which the writers along with their fantastic artists present in graphic novel format the life and body of work of Bertrand Russell along with all figures he interacted with, including Gottlob Frege, Georg Cantor and especially Ludwig Wittgentein. We get the core ideas - and historic context - of these figures presented and explained to us laymen who may not be fans of math and logic in a manner easily understood and engaging.
Biographics: "20th Century's Greatest Philosopher"
Martin Heidegger: "Hold my mug of 1516 Bavarian Lager..."
If you're going for most influential, you have to admit that Wittgenstein's work is far reaching, touching on almost every contemporary work in analytic philosophy and even inspiring most, if not all, of the great continental thinkers who delved into language in the late 20th century. Although Heidegger's work is indeed deeply influential to several prominent thinkers, his audience is fairly narrow compared to Wittgenstein's.
Heidegger was definitely the most respectable Nazi.
@cda6590 really? Nobody showed up to his seminar about logic, language and the mind
16:34 Peter Capaldi is a shoe in to play Wittgenstein.
would be a great role for him and a great film
He wasn't even a philosopher, he was a logist. The Tractatus is a milestone in Philosophy, as any one who read it (and truly understand it) may not be able to do philosophy on the old fashioned way. That is why he was called "the last philosopher", as his method put an end to a millennial tradition of speculation and linguistic confussion whom are the true core of traditional philosophy activity.
great video as always. i would like to make a suggestion : MAX STIRNER
and also : BURKE AND WILLS (australian explorers who died on the trip back)
BURN YOUR COUCH there isn’t a lot of information on Stirner’s life and it’s better that way tbh. It’s not about him as an identity it’s about superseding definition identity and limitation, taking enlightenment individualism so far into its conclusions it falls back on itself becomes a sort of Taoist nondual union with the infinite and taking property so seriously that it destroys the very notion of property.
Nice touch, adding sections of Brahm's music! 🖒
Could you do a bio on Thich Nan Hanh please. He's had an interesting life. As usual Simon, nothing but perfection from you. Best channel on UA-cam by far.
You mean Thich Nhat Hanh. And I agree.
Have you done Albert Camus?
Jamie Ballard 5
People for Future Biographics Video:
Harold Lloyd
Orson Welles
George Melies
Patrice Lamubaba
Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle
I think the best thing most philosophers can do is quit their field.
Philosophy will never end. Why would the love of knowledge ever be completed?
Agreed❤️
PLEASE do a biographic on Robert the Bruce!! One of the greatest comeback stories in history
Bro! You gotta do your biography at one million subscribers!
Good idea 💡
Based profile pic my man
Dear Lud and Kafka have that intense look
That could quite easily explode s book!
cheered me right up that one - any jolly life stories Simon?
I am exhausted about this Philospher, and if he thinks he had a wonderful life, I guess I am at a lost but, Ok!😏
Great video. Thanks you. Aaron Swartz please next.
Idea for another one book wonder: Harper Lee.
Please do more on thinkers and philosophers. Always enjoy your videos
Ludwig's brother, Paul, sacrificed himself to save his sisters. What a hero.
I went across to my good friend Wittgenstein, I opened the door and said quite simply “that’s numberwang” as I remember... he cried!
Great video. Thanks Simon and team. A suggestion, since you have done a video on Robert Mugabe, how about one on Nelson Mandela? Love your Channels. X
9:52 This is very simple to understand. Here, let me give you an example; dont try to explain love with words -- love is what happens around and between the words.
Wittgenstein and Heidegger are both the two greatest philosophers of XX and I'd say Bergson for the third place
"Wittgenstein? Greatest philosopher of the 20th Century? That dude with his silly, little fireplace poker? Hold my beer..." - Karl Popper.
Thomas Kuhn by far better than Popper was.
A Can We Please get a Biographics video on Lon Chaney
Great work on a challenging subject! Thanks ! !
Excellent work Simon!!! 👊🥂⚡🔥
Damn, what a seriously cool dude. Rest in peace.
There is a school picture with both Wittgenstein and Hitler in the same photo. Both look to be about ten years of age. I was surprised you did not show it.
Do you have a link to said photo by any chance?
@@keyboardcorrector2340 It's easy to find if you just google "Wittgenstein Hitler school."
Do Richard Feynman biography
Jordan Britz up
overrated
@@secretweapon8367 That's like saying Einstein is overrated, popular doesn't always equal overrated. He should definitely do one on Feynman, the curious character
@@davyroger3773 who said anything about popular?
@@secretweapon8367 That's true, but something being overrated presupposes that its well known
Wittgenstein legit is the 20th century’s greatest philosopher. Hasn’t been outdone since
He you didn't say anything about his Magnum Opus, Philosopcical Investigations. It was a break from the rest of his work - with some brilliant insights. Enjoying your series
I think *_Heidegger_* fans would disagree with the title.
Heidegger is a phenomenologist
@scoon2117
Is that not, to whatever degree, also a part of philosophy? At the very least the underlying ideas of it are philosophical.
Please do a biographic on the Japanese authors Yukio Mishima and Osamu Dazai
*”The limits of your language are the limits of your world”*
Very interesting!Thank you!
Awesome video! Do more philosophers please!
Please consider a video on Rudolph Steiner.
I didn't think after all this time of centuries of philosophical contemplation and writings that there was anything left for philosophy to solve.
The Vienna guys venerated him:
His Tracta was a philosopher's dream.
So much info in 20 minutes. Just awesome education
I don't understand Wittgenstein, but I've researched and studied a lot about his life. I even have The Duty of Genius book from Ray Monk.
I've been on the edge on buying Monk's book. Have you read it and is it any good?
Spent some time in Dublin there is a plaque too him in the botanical gardens probably the only place he could find a bit of heat even in July
¨Silence is eternal eloquence.¨ - Ramana Maharshi
¨The name that can be named is not the eternal name.¨ - Lao Tze
¨ ¨ - Wittgenstein
thanks for this amazing video! It would be great if you do a Kierkegaard's biography
Thanks.
To his admirers he was the new star;
But most of them admired him from far.
you should do Albert Camus, so much interesting history with him
Clay Kline ingesting guy, fun to read, wack philosophy tho
Obviously..deep thinking leads to depression & unhappiness.........WELL....I'm safe on THAT front!😵
😂😃😄me too, quite safe!
@@elaineburnett5230 Soooo......what's NOT on your mind!!!!😝......wait....if it's important...I DON'T wanna hear 👂it.😋
Can u do one on the famous French existentialist philosopher, Mr.Sartre💕?
Hang Lee no
Sartre
Thanks
I just realized listening to this, that Ludwig’s combining of logic, aesthetics, religion and ethics is almost mirrored in the Gnostic cult I left 2 years ago. The four pillars of Gnosis being philosophy, mysticism, art, and “science”....seems like the guru co-opted this idea.
Probably not. Wittgenstein's conclusion in the Tractatus was essentially that art, religion, and ethics are outside of the realm of his "picture theory of language" and thus cannot be expressed coherently in words. "Whereof one cannot speak, thereof one must remain silent." Russell took this to mean that religion is therefore incoherent since it cannot be expressed in a logical framework, prompting Wittgenstein to fiercely reject that (this is the 'misunderstanding' spoken of in the video) and insisting that instead these realms of human thought must be experienced directly rather than written about logically.
Do more research so you know how asinine your realization is. I am not meaning this to be a personal insult; it's just really asinine if you know Wittgenstein's philosophical ideas better.
Chris the Guru that was the leader of the cult I was in was very into the intellectuals, occultist and “mystics” (especially Blavatsky, Steiner, Jung and Gurdjieff). I’m not saying Ludwig is where Samael got this specifically, just saying it’s similar. Maybe I shouldn’t have used the word mirrored (reflecting an exact copy) but the sentiments are similar.
@@thedude4672 Is this directed towards me? If I am wrong, I don't mind being corrected on my understanding of the Tractatus, but calling me asinine on two occasions seems a little harsh. :(
@@cda6590 Nope, directed toward Lynn. Didn't mean it disrespectfully. Didn't call her asinine. Said the comparison was. Where did I say that you were asinine? [Browsing through comments ...]
Is there a Bernard Russell one yet? If not, go for it!
Please do Hermann Hesse...please....Thank you!
This would be nice, interesting and romantic.
@@reneegiese6315 Thank you! His books are still really far ahead of even our time....all these years later. Think I will go grab Steppenwolf and listen to Pablo and Hermine laughing that Eternal Laugh!!! tata
It wasn't till Monty Python that the Meaning of Life was finally understood
Woah....20th century’s greatest philosopher???? I mean, maybe he is in the running, but I doubt there is any one philosopher of the 20th could claim that title.
Google "most influential philosopher of the 20th century" and you will find myriad polls conducted by people in the field which almost categorically assert that Wittgenstein holds this title. There are definitely important philosophers who come close, but Wittgenstein is almost always on top.
If anyone could, it's Wittgenstein.
Chris Allen I suppose one would have to conflate greatness with influence. And I think I’ve seen the poll you’re referring to, being the one by Leiter reports, as a reaction to NYT proclaiming Wittgenstein. The Leiter one included non-specialist/non-professional/public voters. Personally I’m inclined to agree with Wittgenstein as being the “greatest” or most influential simply because I like him (perhaps to a lesser extent on the latter, because it’s less of a value judgement/opinion and more quantifiable. Besides, it’s also a vague, rather than specific, concept, as influence can take a number of forms and strengths). However, he isn’t my favourite of the 20th. That being said, I don’t really have one, as I’m more interested in enlightenment era philosophy in my own work/schooling. All in all, calling anyone the greatest philosopher seems contrary to the discipline, ha ha! Though there was a very good quote in the Leiter article about this topic, and seeing as the 20th century seems to be more influential on current work than say, the 17th or 18th, i find it all the more interesting.
"I actually find these exercises more indicative of what current members of the profession are currently thinking of as central than of any indication of greatness (you might recall that Hume thought Addison was destined to be a greater philosopher than Locke... oh well)."
Chris Allen in addition I’d also note that Wittgenstein was-primarily and broadly put-an epistemologist, more specifically working with logic and the philosophy of language, so his influence on ethics is (in broad strokes) limited. There isn’t a ton language games can do for ethics lol ;)
@@XLegiitBadassX A couple years ago when I read the Leiter report it was confined solely to academics, but now it seems it was subsequently open to the public. Regardless, Wittgenstein topped the charts on both occasions.
But you do make a fair enough point in saying that influence doesn't necessarily imply greatness. I will admit my own personal bias in my preferred area of specialties leads me to call him the greatest of the century, and I can understand why someone who prefers a different area of study might be inclined to feel another is superior--or in your case, that no one in particular can be labelled the "greatest" seeing as what one considers the greatest might heavily rely on their personal interests.
"If you know that 'here is one hand' we will grant you all the rest."
Nick M O O R E
@@Catholictomherbert True, but it is the opening To the edited works "On Certainty" which Wittgenstein wrote in the last year of his life, (In German). He was referring to Moore though. I just enjoy the simplicity of the sentence.
Please do Voltaire!
Could you do a Bio of Juvenal Habyarimana. Rwanda president 1973-1994. It would also be interesting to know about President Mobutu Seseseko of Zaire 1962-1997. Excellent work with your Chanel Simon👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼
How about doing Sal from Khan Academy?
Provocative title as subjective assessments generally are - any way it is your show!
Read Magee on the degree of subsumation of Schopenhauer’s philosophy which underpins Witgenstein’s output.
I might suggest a review of John Michell for a rounded yet minutely detailed alternative to the rationalist tradition but bounded by precise consideration of sacred number in the tradition of Plato.
Mitchell’s ambit seems altogether much larger; and for raw uniqueness RB Fuller - more in the Presocratic mode - rewrites the whole of physics upon the honeycomb principle balancing all upon the cusp of the crystallographic with the electrical.
With those two you feel you really get to know something different in another place.
Please do a video on George Gurdjief
What a unusual fellow ! Gives away his fortune and becomes a Porter .
nice one!
That lad went from violin player to warlord so fast man
Ludwig: “I cancelled philosophy..”.
Johann Sebastian Bach demands a video.
Beethoven as well please!
Great stuff!...
Good pocket bio. Though I wish, when talking of Paul's musicality, you'd referenced Ravel's Piano Concerto for the Left Hand, a glorious piece written for and premiered by Wittgenstein, music infinitely superior to the overused Bolero.
I absolutely agree!
Thank you
Ludwig is buried about 200 meters from my house. Charles Darwin's children are buried not far from Ludwig
I wish that I lived in Cambridge. Got to hang out with Stephen Hawking when I was a student at Imperial College in the 1990s. Love England.
Really great video, and quite amazingly done in under 20 Minutes! For me the Blue and Brown Books are the most revealing to old Witt, and who he really was. But none of us will really be able to verify that! haha!
THANK YOU ! PERFECTLY SHARP
Thanks. I almost want to read his book. Almost. I doubt I have the mental energy to spend anymore.
Cambridge doesn't have a campus 😅 he wasn't escaping campus life
You are great!!!