Ludwig Wittgenstein, who died in Cambridge in 1951, is one of the most powerful influences on contemporary philosophy, yet he shunned publicity & was essentially a private man. His friend Norman Malcolm, himself an eminent philosopher, wrote this remarkably vivid personal memoir of Wittgenstein, which was published in 1958 & was immediately recognized as a moving & truthful portrait of this gifted, difficult man. This edition includes also the complete text of the 57 letters which Wittgenstein wrote to Malcolm over a period of eleven years. Apart from the quotations in the Memoir these letters are previously unpublished. They reveal how much friendships mattered to Wittgenstein & how concerned he was for the health & well-being of his friends. His human qualities become evident. He advises, warns, jokes & is grateful & affectionate. The volume also features a concise biographical sketch by another leading philosopher who was a friend of Wittgenstein, Georg Henrik von Wright. Much has been published about Wittgenstein since his death, but nothing brings us closer to the man himself than this modest classic of philosophical biography.
Ludwig Wittgenstein, who died in Cambridge in 1951, is one of the most powerful influences on contemporary philosophy, yet he shunned publicity & was essentially a private man. His friend Norman Malcolm, himself an eminent philosopher, wrote this remarkably vivid personal memoir of Wittgenstein, which was published in 1958 & was immediately recognized as a moving & truthful portrait of this gifted, difficult man. This edition includes also the complete text of the 57 letters which Wittgenstein wrote to Malcolm over a period of eleven years. Apart from the quotations in the Memoir these letters are previously unpublished. They reveal how much friendships mattered to Wittgenstein & how concerned he was for the health & well-being of his friends. His human qualities become evident. He advises, warns, jokes & is grateful & affectionate. The volume also features a concise biographical sketch by another leading philosopher who was a friend of Wittgenstein, Georg Henrik von Wright. Much has been published about Wittgenstein since his death, but nothing brings us closer to the man himself than this modest classic of philosophical biography.