ON CERTAINTY

Is anything of significance lost in giving up the idea of

absolute truth?

Throughout 'On Certainty', Wittgenstein's aim is to remove the

false pictures created by traditional philosophers, by uncovering

the true way that our language functions in our lives, and

showing the irreconcilable difference between this and the way

that philosophers use language in different situations. While

Wittgenstein criticises the theories of traditional philosophers,

he himself does not come up with an alternative theory, as it is

the theorising of philosophers that he sees as creating much of

At the base of all of Wittgenstein's writing in 'On Certainty'

is the notion of language games. According to Wittgenstein, all

that we say only gets any meaning when seen in context. That is,

looking just at what we actually say will tell you nothing, but

you must look at the way that what you say fits in with the

language game employed. Wittgenstein uses the term 'language

game' to describe the way that we use our language in a

particular circumstance for a certain purpose. For instance, the

perfection. If anything, I would see this as being beneficial,

terms of what you see as just, then how can you act at all?

lives. It has developed to be the most effective way of

variety of ways of living, none of which are necessarily more

conflict in the world will be resolved. This utopian dream can

the workers of the world all share in a common oppression under

the world, unite." (Karl Marx & Friedrich Engels, The Communist

way." (Ludwig Wittgenstein, On Certainty 92). In other words,

abandon absolute truth, do we also abandon all notions of

describing what we think and how we behave. "...A meaning of a

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Approximate Word count = 1867
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)