A social theory of language: Ludwig Wittgenstein and the current theoretical debate

Abstract

Summary This article attempts to introduce the work of the later Wittgenstein into the current debate on critical theory in order to suggest the essentially social nature of both criticism and theory. It briefly sketches Wittgenstein's theory of language and meaning after the Tractatus, emphasizing his concept of language games and the fact that particular language games (including those involving the study of literature) spring from and are sustained by specific ‘forms of life’. The most important aspects of Wittgenstein's philosophy of language for the article are (a) his definition of meaning as use, (b) the denial that meaning is a mental event or a product of pre‐linguistic consciousness, and (c) the suggestion that language stems from a variety of social practices which control and make possible various forms of discourse, or language games. The article then argues that debates about theory within literature are sustained by social factors ‐ the struggle between ‘abnormal’ and ‘normal’ discourse, or...