Ludwig Wittgenstein · Philosophy

Rule-Following and Forms of Life

Beneath meaning lies the puzzle of what it is to follow a rule. Any rule can be interpreted in endless ways, so no interpretation can fix correct use; rule-following must be a practice, a custom, grounded not in further rules but in shared training and agreement - in ‘forms of life’, the bedrock where justifications end and we simply act.

What you'll be able to recall

You learned Wittgenstein’s rule-following puzzle: any rule admits endless interpretations, so interpretation cannot fix correct application; following a rule is therefore a public practice or custom, resting on shared training and agreement in a ‘form of life’ - the bedrock where ‘my spade is t…

Leads to David Hume.

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