Wittgenstein's Equivocations

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Here are a few favorite Wittgenstein equivocations:

 

What is the sum of 2 plus apples?

She sat down grammatically.

I rode my bicycle in French.

The number seven hurts.

I have N friends and 3N+ 5= 0

 

Wittgenstein wrote that meaning is usage and explanations are circular.

Even an unambiguous word like hello has a different meaning if uttered when

meeting a person, than when used as an exclamation in the middle of a

conversation.

 

Strangely (for a philosopher), he claimed that language is accurate only when

used colloquially, that when used philosophically propositions are nonsense, or

even jokes.

 

The meaning of 'I'm hungry. " is unequivocal. Everyone understands the meaning of

'I',

and hunger as stated, but in the proposition, " I know Truth. " the meaning is so

obscure

that it requires three branches of philosophy: Ontology, Epistemology and

Logic to

try to explain the meaning of those words, and still no consensus is achieved.

 

Take this Zen exchange which carries the same sentiment of the futility of words

in conveying reality.

 

Monk: " What is Zen? "

Master: " Ask me tomorrow, it's too cloudy today. "

 

Next day.

 

Monk: " What is Zen? "

Master: " Zen is Zen. "

 

Pete

 

 

 

 

 

 

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