Mechanıcal roots of Tractatus: the influence of Hermann von Helmholtz, Heinrich Hertz and Ludwig Boltzmann on early Wittgenstein philosophy and the Tractarian picture theory

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2022-5-24

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Kaplan, Osman Baran

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In this thesis, the biography of Ludwig Wittgenstein, who put forward Tractarian picture theory, which is the subject of the thesis, will be told by focusing especially on his life story before he wrote the Tractatus, and then the general structure of the Tractatus will be discussed. In addition, an introduction will be made by referring to Tractarian picture theory. Then, after the "sign"-based perception theory of Hermann von Helmholtz, who was originally the grandfather of Tractarian picture theory, is explained in detail, the "mechanics" of Heinrich Hertz, a figure that Wittgenstein openly stated to be influenced, will be discussed. As it is known, Hertz was inspired by the "sign" based perception theory of his teacher Helmholtz while developing his "picture theory". Next, we will consider the similarities between Wittgenstein and Hertz and show where Wittgenstein was influenced by the Hertzian understanding of mechanics. Finally, we will talk about the famous Austrian physicist Ludwig Boltzmann's own Bildtheorie, which had great effects on the early Wittgenstein, and we will clarify the relationship between it and the Tractarian picture theory. However, by arguing that the Boltzmannian picture theory is a naturalist epistemology based mostly on the Darwinian understanding of evolution, we will show that Boltzmann's main influence on Wittgenstein is related to the role he assigned to philosophy in the Tractatus.

Subject Keywords

Picture Theory, Ludwig Wittgenstein, Hermann von Helmholtz, Heinrich Hertz, Ludwig Boltzmann

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https://hdl.handle.net/11511/97317

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Graduate School of Social Sciences, Thesis

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Citation Formats

O. B. Kaplan, “Mechanıcal roots of Tractatus: the influence of Hermann von Helmholtz, Heinrich Hertz and Ludwig Boltzmann on early Wittgenstein philosophy and the Tractarian picture theory,” M.A. - Master of Arts, Middle East Technical University, 2022.