Drafts by Richard McDonough
Wittgenstein and Whitehead Again: A Reply to Randy Ramal, 2019
The present paper is a reply to Randy Ramal's 2017 paper that appeared in Process Studies. I arg... more The present paper is a reply to Randy Ramal's 2017 paper that appeared in Process Studies. I argue that Ramal misconstrues my own views on Wittgenstein and Whitehead but also misconstrues Wittgenstein's views. Key topics include Wittgenstein's "organicism", his view of "essences", the question whether the Tractatus defends "logical atomism", the importance of the "picture theory of meaning" in the Tractatus, the Tractatus doctrines of "showing" and "saying", the status of the "ethical" and the "mystical" in the Tractatus, Wittgenstein's anticipation of "paraconsistent" logics, Wittgenstein's "later" view that everything in philosophy is "open to view", Wittgenstein's "later" view about the relation of philosophy and ordinary language, and the question whether Wittgenstein understands his "later" philosophical views as in any sense metaphorical. Both Wittgenstein's early Tractatus and his later philosophy are discussed.
Papers by Richard McDonough
The paper argues that Plato’s dialogue form creates a Quinean “opaque context” that segregates th... more The paper argues that Plato’s dialogue form creates a Quinean “opaque context” that segregates the assertions by Plato’s characters in the dialogues from both Plato and the real world with the result that the dialogues require a hermeneutical interpretation. Sec. I argues that since the assertions in the dialogues are located inside an opaque context, the forms of life of the characters in the dialogues acquires primary philosophical importance for Plato. The second section argues that the thesis of Sec. I coheres with the claim in Plato’s Seventh Letter that since philosophical truth is incommunicable by means of language it is of primary importance for philosophers to develop proper “schemes of living” (forms of life). Sec. III argues since the forms of life of the characters portrayed in the dialogues is of primary philosophical importance for Plato, and since hermeneutical methods are required to interpret emerging forms of life, Plato’s dialogues are positively crafted to be re...
The present paper takes its point of departure from “McDonough’s Logical Argument” (hereafter MLA... more The present paper takes its point of departure from “McDonough’s Logical Argument” (hereafter MLA) that “gays” have traditionally had the same marital rights as “straights”, namely to marry one eligible person of the opposite gender. The present paper argues that, although it might not seem so at first glance, MLA is consistent with full legal rights being accorded to “Same Sex Marriage” (SSM). That is, MLA takes no stand on the substantive issue whether SSM should be legalized, but is merely an attempt to make a purely logical point about the “individuation” (the precise specification) of the right to marry. An illuminating social science fiction example is provided to show that MLA is neutral on the legalization of SSM. The paper argues that philosophical argument per se is largely impotent on these kinds of issues, and that the justification for legalizing SSM is to be found, rather, in the democratic process.
One of Cavell’s most striking themes, which he associates with Wittgenstein's Remarks on the ... more One of Cavell’s most striking themes, which he associates with Wittgenstein's Remarks on the Foundations of Mathematics (IV. 53), is that there is a close connection between philosophy and madness and that madness lurks just beneath the surface of ordinary life. However, he does not quote the final remark of that section which suggests that just as madness permeates sanity so also death permeates life (Wittgenstein’s “Midst of Death and Madness”, hereafter MDM). The extensive religious-literary history of MDM, including Augustine, Luther, Milton and Rilke (several of which are admired by Wittgenstein) is explored. MDM is viewed in the light of Wittgenstein’s Remark to Drury that he cannot help looking at problems from a religious point of view. The view of death in Wittgenstein’s “later philosophy” is contrasted with his view in the Tractatus. It is shown how Wittgenstein uses MDM to bring the deceptive sublimity of mathematics “down to earth” (where the people and the madness a...
Graduate Faculty Philosophy Journal
Philosophy and Literature
The Thomist: A Speculative Quarterly Review, 1992
Religious Studies, 2016
The article criticizes Gale and…
Studies in Sociology of Science, Nov 26, 2014
The paper, following a suggestion by Kripke, argues that there is an illuminating analogy between... more The paper, following a suggestion by Kripke, argues that there is an illuminating analogy between Wittgenstein's philosophy and Austrian economics (particularly that of Mises and Hayek). Most scholars interpret paragraph 608 of Wittgenstein's Zettel (hereafter Z608) to suggest that language might arise out of physical chaos at the neural centre. Since, however, Wittgenstein holds that the philosopher must not advance theories, he cannot consistently be advancing such theories in Z608. Rather, all the key concepts in Z608 must be cashed in terms of Wittgenstein's "forms of life". Thus, Z608, read carefully, suggests that language "arises", not out of chaos in the brain, but out of the chaotic activities in human forms of life. The paper shows that an analogous picture occurs in the early Austrian economists (such as Hayek, who is Wittgenstein's cousin, and Mises). Z608 is part of a still unappreciated Austrian movement that emphasizes the creative chaos in human life. In this connection the paper explains how Z608 is an application of Wittgenstein's "private language argument" against a neural theory of a private language. Finally, the paper shows that the real argument in Z608 traces to early Austrian phenomenology-shedding light both on Wittgenstein's philosophy and on Austrian economics.
Journal of the British Society For Phenomenology, Oct 21, 2014
International Studies in Philosophy, 1998
Philosophical Quarterly, 1994
Studies in Literature and Language, Apr 28, 2015
Many scholars have found both Wittgenstein's suggestion in para. 608 of Zettel (hereafter Z608) t... more Many scholars have found both Wittgenstein's suggestion in para. 608 of Zettel (hereafter Z608) that language and thought may arise out of chaos at the centre and his remark to his friend Drury that he looks at philosophical problems from a religious point of view to be most puzzling. The paper argues that the language in Z608 illustrates his point in his remark to Drury. For the language of the emergence of meaning from chaos at the true centre is the religious language of creation found in Goethe and Milton-both of whom were much admired by Wittgenstein. The paper refutes the orthodox interpretations that Z608 suggests that language and thought may arise out of chaos at the neural centre. The "religious-cosmological" interpretation of Z608 is sketched. It is shown that the language of Z608 is found in Goethe's Faust and in Milton's Paradise Lost. On this basis a, roughly, phenomenological" reading of Z608 is developed. Finally, it is argued that this literaryreligious reading of the language in Z608 expresses Wittgenstein's view that humanity lives, so to speak, in a fallen state, and that, therefore, human language and human philosophizing are limited by humanity's fallen (from paradise) state-or, as Wittgenstein puts it in the religious language in the Preface to his Philosophical Investigations, that humanity is currently limited by the "poverty and darkness of our time."
Air, 1999
's Recent Philosophers began as an attempt to produce a chapter for an expanded edition of A Hund... more 's Recent Philosophers began as an attempt to produce a chapter for an expanded edition of A Hundred Years of Philosophy. The task is somewhat simplified because, as in that earlier work, Recent Philosophers focuses on epistemology, logic, and metaphysics, construed broadly to include the philosophies of mind, language, and science. Like A Hundred Years, therefore, it is oriented to philosophers in the Anglo-American tradition. Furthermore, though the "Recent" in the title begins in 1966, Passmore often goes back beyond that date in order to provide continuity and explanation, and therefore discusses many philosophers prior to 1966. A list of the philosophers emphasized in the book includes Armstrong,
The Southern Journal of Philosophy, Jun 1, 1995
Bertrand Russell Archives, and in numerous books. Most of his papers center around the criticism ... more Bertrand Russell Archives, and in numerous books. Most of his papers center around the criticism of the mechanistic worldview (particularly in its application to mind and meaning).
Philosophy and Literature, 2015
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Drafts by Richard McDonough
Papers by Richard McDonough