Resistances of the Will Must be Overcome: Wittgenstein on the Difficulty of Philosophy

Andrew Norris

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Resistances of the Will Must be Overcome

Wittgenstein on the Difficulty of Philosophy

In: Wittgensteinian Exercises

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Andrew Norris

Andrew Norris
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Type:: Chapter

Pages:: 207–231

DOI:: https://doi.org/10.30965/9783846767450_011

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Abstract

In Philosophical Investigations § 133, Wittgenstein distinguishes between the solving of philosophical problems and “the real discovery” that brings the philosopher Ruhe and enables her to stop doing philosophy when she wants. While some have argued that no such discovery is possible, this leaves unclear why Wittgenstein would suggest otherwise. In this chapter, I take him at his word, and argue that the real discovery is the achievement of a kind of autonomy, and that Wittgenstein’s work is written for those who currently lack it. Though Wittgenstein urges us to look and see how language and the world work, he also argues that we cannot see what is in plain view because we do not want to see it. Wittgenstein follows Augustine in rejecting classical intellectualism and embracing a conception of our fundamental difficulty as a perversity of the will whereby we turn away from ourselves and what we most desire.

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Wittgensteinian Exercises

Aesthetic and Ethical Transformations

Series: Ästhetische Praxis, Volume: 3

E-Book ISBN:: 9783846767450

Publisher:: Brill | Fink

Print Publication Date:: 26 Apr 2023

Subjects
- Philosophy
  - Aesthetics & Cultural Theory

Front Matter

Section I Transformative Paths: Philosophical Exercises and Aesthetic Practices

Section II Philosophical Exercises and Ethical Transformations

Section III Practicing Philosophy in a Wittgensteinian Spirit

Back Matter

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Resistances of the Will Must be Overcome

Wittgenstein on the Difficulty of Philosophy

Abstract

Citation Info

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Wittgensteinian Exercises

Aesthetic and Ethical Transformations

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