Words and Things: An Examination Of, and an Attack On, Linguistic PhilosophyWhen Ernest Gellner was his early thirties, he took it upon himself to challenge the prevailing philosophical orthodoxy of the day, Linguistic Philosophy. Finding a powerful ally in Bertrand Russell, who provided the foreword for this book, Gellner embarked on the project that was to put him on the intellectual map. The first determined attempt to state the premises and operational rules of the movement, Words and Things remains philosophy's most devastating attack on a conventional wisdom to this day. |
Contents
Of Linguistic Philosophy | 45 |
Of Language | 58 |
Of Philosophy | 94 |
Revolt | 142 |
Of Knowledge | 170 |
What One Looks Like when not Looking | 183 |
Seeing the World Rightly | 186 |
The Sages of Lagado | 189 |
The Withering away of Philosophy | 232 |
The Spurious Fox | 233 |
Twotier Doctrine and Invertebrate Philosophy | 234 |
The Full Circle | 235 |
Solvitur Ambulando | 237 |
Differential Realism | 238 |
The New Koran | 240 |
Saladins Fork | 242 |
Not to Ask the Reason Why | 193 |
The Proselytising Solipsist | 197 |
The Elusive but Comforting Doctrine | 199 |
The Delphic Insight | 202 |
The Argument from Impotence | 206 |
Conclusion | 214 |
Structure and Strategy | 216 |
The Structure of Linguistic Philosophy | 218 |
The Spectrum | 224 |
The PrayerWheel | 228 |
The Needle in the Haystack | 229 |
Philosophy by Filibuster | 230 |
The Reluctant Centipede | 231 |
The Indian Rope Trick | 245 |
Philosophy by Frisson | 247 |
Keep them Guessing | 248 |
Insinuation and Tabo0 | 250 |
Whoever Said This? | 252 |
Offensive and Defensive Positions | 253 |
A Sense of Decorum | 255 |
Assessment | 257 |
Implications | 290 |
Sociology | 301 |
Conclusion | 343 |
Other editions - View all
Words and Things: An Examination Of, and an Attack On, Linguistic Philosophy Ernest Gellner No preview available - 1979 |
Words and Things: An Examination Of, and an Attack On, Linguistic Philosophy Ernest Gellner No preview available - 2005 |
Common terms and phrases
activity actual alleged argument Aristotelian Society assertions behaviour Bertrand Russell called camouflaged characteristic claim common sense concepts confusion context Contrast Theory course criteria criticism denial deny describe discourse doctrine empiricism epistemology existence expression fact fallacy formal fundamental G. E. Moore Gellner Gilbert Ryle guage hence ideas important ineffable insight insinuated insistence instance intellectual J. L. Austin kind language games Linguistic Phil Linguistic Philosophy linguo-philosophic Logical Atomism Logical Positivism logical positivist Ludwig Wittgenstein merely method mind mirror movement mysticism natural naturalistic Naturalistic Fallacy neutral norms notion ordinary language osophy Oxford Paradigm paradox perhaps philo philosophical problems plausible Polymorphism position possible premiss presupposes Professor propositions questions reasons religion rules scholasticism seems social solution speak substantive supposed theory of knowledge theory of language theory of meaning Third Person thought tion Tractatus trivial true truth underlying usage vision whilst Wittgenstein Wittgensteinian