A pragmatist conception of certainty

Wittgenstein and Santayana

Guy Bennett-Hunter

in: Wittgenstein and pragmatism, European Journal of Pragmatism and American Philosophy 4 (2), 2012.

Abstract

The ways in which Wittgenstein was directly influenced by William James (by his early psychological work as well his later philosophy) have been thoroughly explored and charted by Russell B. Goodman. In particular, Goodman has drawn attention to the pragmatist resonances of the Wittgensteinian notion of hinge propositions as developed and articulated in the posthumously edited and published work, On Certainty. This paper attempts to extend Goodman’s observation, moving beyond his focus on James (specifically, James’s Pragmatism) as his pragmatist reference point. It aims to articulate the affinity between Wittgenstein’s thought on the topic of certainty and that of the neglected pragmatist thinker, George Santayana.

Cited authors

James William

Wittgenstein Ludwig

Santayana George

Goodman Russell B.