Wittgenstein (Modern)

Rating:
Summary: The Man, The Myth, The Philosophy.
Review: Fantastic book, full of drama in the deepest sense. I just couldn't stop reading it, and hoped that, like Borges' "Book of Sand", it would have no end. The experiences of the philosopher as a teacher in a lost alpine village in Austria are here beautifully and terribly described.

Rating:
Summary: Terribly beautiful
Review: Fantastic book, full of drama in the deepest sense. I just couldn't stop reading it, and hoped that, like Borges' "Book of Sand", it would have no end. The experiences of the philosopher as a teacher in a lost alpine village in Austria are here beautifully and terribly described.

Rating:
Summary: Important for Perspective
Review: In a brief (a little over 200 pages) study of Wittgenstein's thought, Bartley, in this supposedly controversial book, gives a credible introduction to one of the most important philosophers of the twentieth century. Most come to this book because of Bartley's reports of Wittgenstein's active homosexual life. In the revised edition, the author rebuttals such claims, stating that in the few pages dedicated to the thesis is not a substantial aspect of the philosopher's life, but one that should not be overlooked. Though, as most of his critics state, this section of the text seems rather poorly researched and documented in relation to the rest of the text and is largely based upon speculation, however probable. If one does not become preoccupied with this aspect of the study (which the additional essays in the text seem to make the core of the text), the work does serve as a brief, but critical and well-presented study of Wittgenstein's life and work. The essays in the latter edition are more thorough and more philosophical in the respect of Bartley challenging his objectors and in "The Question of the Relevance of His Homosexuality to Wittgenstein's Philosophy," the author refutes initiating formalistic readings in relation to philosophic work, which is well argued and can be presented not only in relation to Wittgenstein and his thought, but all of philosophy and its writers. This study of Wittgenstein does not detract from his image (which many of Bartley's objectors, one gets the feeling, are merely supporting their own lionization of the thinker) but lends a critical, and at this time, non-traditional, interpretation of Wittgenstein and his work. This text serves as a good litmus test to Monk's biography.

Rating:
Summary: The Man, The Myth, The Philosophy.
Review: This was an enjoyable read. I was surprised, and happy, to see that not very much time was spent on Wittgenstein's homosexuality and supposedly torrid affairs, but was instead spent discussing how his years as a schoolteacher influenced his later philosophy. Also, any of Wittgenstein's actual philosophy that was present in the book was presented in a clear, concise manner so that practically anyone could understand it. The amount of space discussing Austrian school reform in the 1930s was a little odd, though...

Rating:
Summary: Feeling Intimidated?
Review: Wittgenstein, possibly the greatest philosopher of the 20th century, has been getting all of the expected comments from homophobes: "Oh, I hate gay people, but because Wittgenstein is so extremely important I'm now going to say that his homosexuality wasn't a very important part of his life (even though I hate gay marriage to the point of obession, like a typical "red states" American.). Well, it turns out that a gay man may have just be the greatest philosopher of the 20th century, and no matter who you are or what you believe, you cannot but deal with that. By the way: Plato, possibly Kant, Arthur Schopenhauer, Roland Barthes, Michel Foucault, George Santayana, and possibly Nietzsche were also gay.