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Wittgenstein: Spiritual Practices
Author(s) -
BEARN GORDON C.F.
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
journal of philosophy of education
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.501
H-Index - 41
eISSN - 1467-9752
pISSN - 0309-8249
DOI - 10.1111/1467-9752.12391
Subject(s) - reading (process) , epistemology , sociology , philosophy of life , aesthetics , philosophy of education , simple (philosophy) , philosophy , higher education , linguistics , law , political science
This essay suggests that Wittgenstein's philosophy can be read as an example of what Hadot and Foucault call spiritual practices, and it uses that reading to cast light on the way certain experiences can change one's life. These experiences could as simple as reading a book or even, as might be the case with Thoreau, living alone by a pond. The essay concentrates on the spiritual practices of the Tractatus , but it uses the Investigations' discussion of noticing a change in aspect to characterise these life‐altering experiences. Wittgenstein sought to transform our vision of the world and to induce a metamorphosis in our being by weaning us from the expectation that philosophy will solve the problem of life and by pointing us in the direction of a pedagogy of things.