TITLE:
A Possible Resolution of the Tractarian Paradox*
AUTHORS:
Andreas Georgallides
KEYWORDS:
Paradox, Truths, Nonsense, Mysticism, Silence
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Philosophy,
Vol.11 No.1,
February
8,
2021
ABSTRACT: While Wittgenstein examines the relationship between
language and the world in the Tractatus, he establishes a paradox which cancels out the possibility of the work being either true or nonsense.
The crucial question arises as to whether this paradox succeeds in undermining the
whole work or whether the work continues to function in some way in spite of it. In this article, I explain why previous interpretations aiming to resolve the tractarian paradox have failed, for instance the “traditional view” and the “resolute reading view”.
My purpose is to propose a third interpretation, which I believe constitutes a possible
resolution of the tractarian paradox, since,
through this, the role of the paradox is clarified, namely to create space for mysticism.