Wittgenstein - Alessandra Tanesini

In this new book, Alessandra Tanesini demonstrates that feministthought has a lot to offer to the study of Wittgenstein'sphilosophical work, and that -at the same time-that work caninspire feminist reflection in new directions.

In Wittgenstein, Tanesini offers a highly originalinterpretation of several themes in Wittgenstein's philosophy. Sheargues that when we look at his work through feminist eyes wediscover that he is not primarily concerned with providingsolutions to technical problems in the philosophy of mind,mathematics, and language. Instead, his remarks on these topics areintended to offer insights about human finitude, the loneliness ofthe modern autonomous self, and our relations to other humanbeings. Thus, the modern conception of the individual emerges asthe critical target of Wittgenstein's philosophical work, bothearly and late.

This conception has also been one of the dominant concerns ofcontemporary feminist philosophy. In this book, Wittgenstein'sinsights are deployed to further feminist debates on issues such asidentity, difference, the masculine character of the modernself.