Language Games

Wittgenstein's Language Games

In this course Dr Rupert Read (University of East Anglia) explores Wittgenstein’s language games, with special reference to religious language and belief. In the first module, we introduce language games in the context of Wittgenstein’s philosophical method. In the second module, we examine the ways in which language games cast light on the nature of religious utterances. In the third module, we look at the nature of religious belief and practices. In the fourth module, we review some objections to language games and possible responses to these objections, before turning to the role of analogy in the fifth module. In the sixth module, we evaluate whether the position of ‘Wittgensteinian fideism’ holds true to Wittgenstein’s philosophical worldview, including his attitude to language games and religious belief.

Language Games

In this module, we introduce Wittgenstein’s language games in the context of his wider philosophy, focusing in particular on (i) Wittgenstein’s project of liberating minds, as delineated in his two major works: Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus, and Philosophical Investigations (ii) the meaning and purpose of language games (iii) the nature of the analogy between language and games (iv) the significance of ‘family resemblances’ in undoing the dogma of language essentialism (v) removing misconceptions about language games (vi) language as a form of life (vii) the variety of language games.