Wittgenstein and Meaning

The subject of this paper is something very general – namely, Wittgenstein’s conception of meaning. The concept of meaning necessarily brings with it other concepts, such as ‘subject’, ‘rule’, ‘language’ and ‘system’, and so we shall be concerned in one way or another with all of these too. However, our direct focus will be on the concept of the proposition, and our primary aim will be to clarify various category distinctions which determine this concept. The overall thesis which we shall argue towards is that there is more of a common conception of meaning between early and later Wittgenstein than is generally acknowledged, and that this common conception can be elucidated through the application of Kantian ideas.